r 


F 


UC-NRLF 


$B   SME  m=i 


.^ 


A  BRIEF 


HISTORY 


TOWN   OF 


STONEHAM,  MASS., 


I  KOM    ITS    FIRST    SETTLEMENT    TO    THE  YEAR  1813: 


AN    ACCOUNT    C 


fOF   JACOB    GOULD, 


On  the  Evening  of  Nov.  25,  1S19. 


HY    SlLAvS   DEAN. 


PUr.LISHED  BY  REQUEST. 


STONEHAM: 

SENTINEL    PRESS,    H.    C.    GRAY,    PRINTER. 

1870. 


http://www.archive.org/det 


A  BRIEF 


H  ISTORY 


TOWN   OF 

STONEHAM,    MASS., 

FROM   ITS    FIRST    SETTLEMENT   TO   THE  YEAR  1843 : 
WITH 

AN    ACCOUNT   OF  THE   MURDER    OF  JACOB    GOULD, 

On  the  Evening  of  Nov.  25,  1S19. 


BY    SILAS   DEAN. 


PUBLISHED  BY  REQUEST. 


STONEHAM: 

SENTINEL    PRESS,   H.   C.    GRAY,    PRINTER, 
1870. 


.3881 


HISTORY,    &c, 


According  to  the  best  information  that  can  be  obtained, 
that  tract  of  land  included  in  what  is  now  called  Stoneham, 
was  first  settled  about  the  year  1645.  In  the  year  1640,  four 
brothers  by  the  name  of  Holden,  came  over  to  this  country 
from  the  county  of  Suffolk,  in  England.  The  fifth  and  young- 
est brother  of  the  family  remained  in  his  native  land.  Three 
of  the  names  of  those  who  came  to  this  country  were 
Kichard,  Oliver,  and  Justinian.  Oliver  took  up  a  perma- 
nent residence  in  the  vicinity  of  what  is  now  Charlestown 
Square.  Many  of  his  descendants  are  still  living  in  that 
place.  Justinian  not  being  able  to  procure  land  to  his  liking, 
finally  removed  to  what  is  now  the  town  of  Westminster, 
at  the  northern  part  of  Worcester  County.  He  took  posses- 
sion of  that  township,  and  lived  there  the  remainder  of  his 
days.  After  his  decease,  a  monument  was  erected  to  perpet- 
uate his  memory,  and  also  stating  the  facts  connected  with 
his  settlement  in  that  township.  His  descendants  still  re- 
main there,  and  are  among  the  most  wealthy  and  influential 
members  of.  society.  The  fourth  brother  (whose  name  is 
not  known)  removed  to  the  State  of  Connecticut,  and  noth- 
ing further  is  known  with  regard  to  him.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered that  this  town  was  at  that  time  (and  indeed  till  the 
year  of  its  incorporation,  which  was  1725),  a  part  of  Charles- 
town.  Eichard  it  seems  concluded  to  remove  to  the  north- 
erly part  of  the  town.  The  house  which  it  is  said  he  built 
and  lived  in,  stood  from  twenty-five  to  thirty  rods  southwest 
from  where  the  house  of  Nathan  Bucknam  now  stands,  at 
the  southwest  part  of  the  town.  From  Eichard  Holden  it 
appears  all  (in  this  immediate  vicinity)  of  that  name  de- 
scended. Eichard  Holden's  first  child  (whose  name  was 
Samuel,)  was  born  in  the  year  1649.  Asa  Holden,  now  living 
in  this  town,  is  a  descendant  of  Eichard,  of  the  fifth  genera- 
tion, Asa  Holden's  grandfather  being  a  grandson  of  Eich- 
ard. I  tind  an  ancient  stone  in  the  burying  yard  with  the 
following  inscription:     '•'■Here  lies  ye  Body  of  Mrs.  Anna 


Holden,  wife  of  Samuel  Holden,  who  departed  this  life  June 
18th,  1731,  aged  72  years."  This  was  evidently  the  wife  of 
Kiehard's  first  son.  According  to  the  date  of  lier  death,  she 
was  born*in  the  year  1659.  As  1  have  before  stated  when 
the  four  brothers  came  to  this  country,  which  reason  was 
that  they  might  enjoy  their  religious  sentiments  unmolested, 
that  the  youngest  brother  remained  in  his  native  land.  I  am 
told  that  the  Holden  family  were  heirs  to  the  estate  of  a  rich 
lord,  who  was  a  bachelor.  After  the  decease  of  this  rich 
lord,  the  remaining  brother  took  the  property  which  they  in- 
herited, and  with  his  family  removed  to  this  country,  in  1646. 
He  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land  and  settled  in  the  State 
of  Ehode  Island.  He  made  every  effort  possible,  (as  has 
been  since  ascertained,)  to  find  his  brothers  and  give  them 
their  several  portions,  but  all  his  efforts  proved  unavailing, 
and  all  his  hopes  of  enjoying  his  new  home  and  religious 
privilege,  were  soon  blasted.  In  a  few  short  months  he  sick- 
ened and  died.  All  hopes  of  finding  his  brothers  being  given 
up,  the  disconsolate  widow  sold  his  estate,  took  all  the  prop- 
erty in  her  possession,  (which  no  doubt  was  a  very  hand- 
some sum,)  and  returned  back  to  old  England.  Mr.  George 
Piper,  who  lived  in  East  Woburn,  a  few  years  since,  (an 
Englishman  by  birth,)  stated  that  he  was  knowing  to  a  large 
sum  of  money  being  deposited  in  a  certain  place  near  Lon- 
don or  Liverpool,  by  the  name  of  the  Holden  fund,  which 
gives  us  reason  to  suppose  that  this  was  the  very  legacy  left 
to  this  family;  but  which,  if  not  called  for  after  a  certain 
length  of  time,  would  be  appropriated  by  government,  as 
they  saw  best. 

Some  persons  have  supposed  that  the  first  person  that 
took  up  a  residence  in  town,  was  a  Scotchman  named 
Hay,  but  if  the  record  kept  by  Asa  Holden  be  correct, 
which  I  cannot  doubt,  as  he  has  the  date  of  births  down 
to  himself,  then  it  is  certain  that  Holden  was  here  pre- 
viously. Hay  was  the  first  at  the  centre  of  the  town.  The 
circumstances  of  Hay's  coming  to  this  country  were  as  fol- 
lows :  He  was  bound  out  as  an  apprentice  in  the  city  of  Ed- 
inburgh, Scotland,  but  being  dissatisfied  with  his  situation, 
he  resolved  on  leaving  his  master.  He  accordingl}^  took  pas- 
sage for  this  country  on  board  a  vessel  bound  for  Salem.  _  On 
arriving  at  Salem,  being  unable  to  pay  his  passage,  which 
must  have  been  considerable  at  that  time,  the  captain  of  the 
vessel  sold  or  bound  him  out  to  a  man  in  Lynnfield,  to  work 
till  he  should  pay  his  passage,  which  was  something  like  six 
or  seven  years.    After  serving  out  his  time  he  coiacluded  to 


come  into  this  vicinity  and  settle  down.  He  commenced 
his  first  labors  by  clearing  up  the  ground  about  what  is  now 
called  Cobble  Hill.  It  is  stated  that  he  came  over  from 
Lynniield  with  his  axe  and  gun,  stopping  for  a  few  days  only 
at  a  time,  and  lodging  in  a  building  or  hut  which  stood  on  or 
near  the  spot  where  the  house  of  Reuben  Locke,  Jr.,  now 
stands.  It  appears  that  he  stood  somewhat  in  fear  of  the 
Indians,  although  he  purchased  his  land  of  them,  at  the  rate 
of  two  coppers  per  acre. 

I  shall  now  give  an  account  of  the  ancient  buildings, 
together  with  some  incidents  connected  with  the  inhabitants 
who  dwelt  in  them.  Richard  Holden,  it  will  be  remembered, 
located  himself  a  short  distance  southwest  from  ^NTathan 
Bucknam's.  About  twenty  rods  southwest  from  his  house, 
another  house  stood  for  several  years  occupied  by  a  family 
named  Howe.  About  fifteen  rods  west  from  Kathan  Buck- 
nam's, a  house  formerly  stood  owned  by  Samuel  Holden. 
In  this  house  Asa  Holden,  now  living,  was  born.  It  is  but 
a  few  years  since  this  house  was  taken  down.  On  the  south- 
west side  of  Bear  Hill,  a  house  stood  many  years  since 
owned  by  a  man  named  Spring.  The  land  in  that  vicinity 
still  retains  that  name.  A  liT^tle  further  to  the  north  or 
.  northwest  there  stood  a  building,  as  a  cellar  hole  at  present 
shows.  Who  lived  in  it,  or  when  it  was  inhabited  is  not 
at  present  known.  Still  farther  to  the  north  a  building  stood 
occupied  by  a  man  named  Parker.  This  house  was  at  length 
removed  to  the  southeast  part  of  the  town,  was  repaired, 
and  occupied  b}'  Thomas  Vinton,  during  his  lifetime.  At 
the  present  time  occupied  by  Reuben  Waitt.  About  one 
hundred  rods  northwest  from  Xathan  Bucknam's,  a  house 
stood  many  years  ago,  occupied  by  a  man  named  Hadley, 
who  married  one  of  Richard  Holden's  daughters.  Anthony 
Hadley,  who  died  several  years  since,  at  an  advanced  age, 
is  said  to  have  been  a  member  of  that  family.  It  may  be 
well  to  state  the  circumstances  connected  with  the  settlement 
of  the  first  person  by  the  name  of  Hadley  in  this  town.  A 
man  by  the  name  of  Gould,  living  at  or  near  the  place  where 
Thomas  Gould  now  lives,  on  a  certain  morning  during  the 
first  settlement  of  the  town,  while  at  his  barn  at  a  very  early 
hour,  a  man  approached  him,  stark  naked,  and  told  him  he 
came  over  to  this  country  on  board  a  war  ship.  The  night  pre- 
vious he  had  deserted  from  the  ship,  and  being  fearful  that 
his  clothes  might  retard  his  escape,  or  the  procuring  of  them 
cause  some  alarm,  he  left  the  vessel  in  a  state  of  nudity.  He 
also  stated  to  Gould  that  if  he  would  provide  him  with 


Holden,  wife  of  Samuel  Holden,  who  departed  this  lite  June 
18th,  1731,  aged  72  years."  This  was  evidently  the  wife  of 
Richard's  first  son.  According  to  the  date  of  her  death,  she 
was  born^in  the  year  1659.  As  I  have  before  stated  when 
the  four  brothers  came  to  this  country,  which  reason  was 
that  they  might  enjoy  their  religious  sentiments  unmolested, 
that  the  youngest  brother  remained  in  his  native  land.  I  am 
told  that  the  Holden  famil)^  were  heirs  to  the  estate  of  a  rich 
lord,  who  was  a  bachelor.  After  the  decease  of  this  rich 
lord,  the  remaining  brother  took  the  property  which  they  in- 
herited, and  with  his  family  removed  to  this  country,  in  1646. 
He  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land  and  settled  in  the  State 
of  Tlhode  Island.  He  made  every  effort  possible,  (as  has 
been  since  ascertained,)  to  find  his  brothers  and  give  them 
their  several  portions,  but  all  his  eflbrts  proved  unavailing, 
and  all  his  hopes  of  enjoying  his  new  home  and  religious 
privilege,  were  soon  blasted.  In  a  few  short  months  he  sick- 
ened and  died.  All  hopes  of  finding  his  brothers  being  given 
up,  the  disconsolate  widow  sold  his  estate,  took  all  the  prop- 
erty in  her  possession,  (which  no  doubt  was  a  very  hand- 
some sum,)  and  returned  back  to  old  England.  Mr.  George 
Piper,  who  lived  in  East  Woburn,  a  few  years  since,  (an 
Englishman  by  birth,)  stated  that  he  was  knowing  to  a  large 
sum  of  money  being  deposited  in  a  certain  place  near  Lon- 
don or  Liverpool,  by  the  name  of  the  Holden  fund,  which 
gives  us  reason  to  suppose  that  this  was  the  very  legacy  left 
to  this  family;  but  which,  if  not  called  for  after  a  certain 
length  of  time,  would  be  appropriated  by  government,  as 
they  saw  best. 

Some  persons  have  supposed  that  the  first  person  that 
took  up  a  residence  in  town,  was  a  Scotchman  named 
Hay,  but  if  the  record  kept  by  Asa  Holden  be  correct, 
which  I  cannot  doubt,  as  he  has  the  date  of  births  down 
to  himself,  then  it  is  certain  that  Holden  was  here  pre- 
viously. Hay  was  the  first  at  the  centre  of  the  town.  The 
circumstances  of  Hay's  coming  to  this  country  were  as  fol- 
lows: He  was  bound  out  as  an  apprentice  in  the  city  of  Ed- 
inburgh, Scotland,  but  being  dissatisfied  with  his  situation, 
he  resolved  on  leaving  his  master.  He  accordingly  took  pas- 
sage for  this  country  on  board  a  vessel  bound  for  Salem.  ^  On 
arriving  at  Salem,  being  unable  to  pay  his  passage,  which 
must  have  been  considerable  at  that  time,  the  captain  of  the 
vessel  sold  or  bound  him  out  to  a  man  in  Lynnfield,  to  work 
till  he  should  pay  his  passage,  which  was  something  like  six 
or  seven  years.    After  serving  out  his  time  he  concluded  to 


come  into  this  vicinity  and  settle  down.  He  commenced 
his  first  labors  by  clearing  up  the  ground  about  what  is  now 
called  Cobble  Hill.  It  is  stated  that  he  came  over  from 
Lynnfield  with  his  axe  and  gun,  stopping  for  a  few  days  only 
at  a  time,  and  lodging  in  a  building  or  hut  which  stood  on  or 
near  the  spot  where  the  house  of  Keuben  Locke,  Jr,,  now 
stands.  It  appears  that  he  stood  somewhat  in  fear  of  the 
Indians,  although  he  purchased  his  land  of  them,  at  the  rate 
of  two  coppers  per  acre. 

I  shall  now  give  an  account  of  the  ancient  buildings, 
together  with  some  incidents  connected  with  the  inhabitants 
who  dwelt  in  them.  Kichard  Holden,  it  will  be  remembered, 
located  himself  a  short  distance  southwest  from  Nathan 
Bucknam's.  About  twenty  rods  southwest  from  his  house, 
another  house  stood  for  several  years  occupied  by  a  family 
name"d  Howe.  About  fifteen  rods  west  from  Kathan  Buck- 
nam's, a  house  formerly  stood  owned  by  Samuel  Holden. 
In  this  house  Asa  Holden,  now  living,  was  born.  It  is  but 
a  few  years  since  this  house  was  taken  down.  On  the  south- 
west side  of  Bear  Hill,  a  house  stood  many  years  since 
owned  by  a  man  named  Spring.  The  land  in  that  vicinity 
still  retains  that  name.  A  little  further  to  the  north  or 
.  northwest  there  stood  a  building,  as  a  cellar  hole  at  present 
shows.  Who  lived  in  it,  or  when  it  was  inhabited  is  not 
at  present  known.  Still  farther  to  the  north  a  building  stood 
occupied  by  a  man  named  Parker.  This  house  was  at  length 
removed  to  the  southeast  part  of  the  town,  was  repaired, 
and  occupied  by  Thomas  Vinton,  during  his  lifetime.  At 
the  present  time  occupied  by  Keuben  Waitt.  About  one 
hundred  rods  northwest  from  ISTathan  Bucknam's,  a  house 
stood  many  years  ago,  occupied  by  a  man  named  Hadley, 
who  married  one  of  Kichard  Holden's  daughters.  Anthony 
Hadley,  who  died  several  years  since,  at  an  advanced  age, 
is  said  to  have  been  a  member  of  that  family.  It  may  be 
well  to  state  the  circumstances  connected  with  the  settlement 
of  the  first  person  by  the  name  of  Hadley  in  this  town.  A 
man  by  the  name  of  Gould,  living  at  or  near  the  place  where 
Thomas  Gould  now  lives,  on  a  certain  morning  during  the 
first  settlement  of  the  town,  while  at  his  barn  at  a  very  early 
hour,  a  man  approached  him,  stark  naked,  and  told  him  he 
came  over  to  this  country  on  board  a  war  ship.  The  night  pre- 
vious he  had  deserted  from  the  ship,  and  being  fearful  that 
his  clothes  might  retard  his  escape,  or  the  procuring  of  them 
cause  some  alarm,  he  left  the  vessel  in  a  state  of  nudity.  He 
also  stated  to  Gould  that  if  he  would  provide  him  with 


6 


clothes,  and  afford  him  means  for  keeping  himself  secreted 
till  after  the  vessel  left  Boston,  he  would  work  for  him  a 
sufficient  length  of  time  to  satisfy  him  for  all  the  trouble  he 
might  be  at.  The  proposal  was  agreed  to,  and  by  this  means 
Hadley  took  up  his  abode  in  this  town,  and  from  him  all  of 
that  name  now  living  in  town  descended. 

Richard  Ilolden's  farm  originally  included  the  land  owned 
by  Spring,  Parker,  Howe,  and  Hadley,  before  mentioned.  It 
took  in  the  land  of  elesse  Dike;  it  also  took  in  the  Hill  farm, 
(the  house  standing  on  said  farm  is  at '  present  occupied  by 
A.  G.  Buttertield  and  Benjamin  Wheeler,  and  is  owned  by 
Warren  Sweetser,)  and  the  two  farms  of  Messrs.  Chamber- 
lain and  Hackett,  situated  in  Woburn. 

The  House  of  Jesse  Dike  is  said  to  have  been  built  by  a 
man  named  Hadley.  It  was  afterwards  occupied  by  the 
father  of  Capt.  James  Steele.  xV  few  rods  northwest  "from 
said  Dike's  house,  there  stood  a  building  owned  by  a  Mr. 
Knight,  a  tailor  by  trade.  Richard  Ilolden's  land  is  supposed 
to  have  extended  as  far  north  as  where  the  saw  mill  owned 
by  David  II.  Buruh^sm  now  stands.  On  this  water  privilege 
there  formerly  stood  a  grist  mill.  I  am  told  that  a  deserter 
from  some  war  vessel  had  secreted  himself  under  the  floor 
of  this  mill.  The  British  soldiers,  who  were  sent  to  take 
him  entered  this  mill.  It  seems  they  were  })retty  well  satis- 
tied  that  he  was  there  concealed.  They  walked  the  floor, 
stamped,  being  enraged  no  doubt,  while  he  was  protected 
from  their  vengeance  by  only  the  thickness  of  the  board  or 
plank  of  which  the  floor  was  made.  He,  however,  providen- 
tially eluded  their  grasp.  A  house  stood  near  the  mill  occu- 
pied for  many  years  by  a  man  named  Gould.  An  old  fire- 
place was  dug. up  there  a  few  years  since  while  preparations 
were  making  foi-  the  laying  of  a  wall. 

At  the  north  of  this,  the  Scotchman  Hay  is  said  to  have 
been  owner  of  the  lands.  He  {)robabIy  owned  as  fiir  north 
as  where  the  school-house  in  District  No.  1  now  stands.  At 
the  north  of  Scotchman  Hay's,  a  man  nanied  Gerry 
owned  the  lands.  The  circumstances  of  his  coming  to  this 
country  are  as  follows:  He  came  over  in  a  man-of-wai',  iict- 
ing  in  the  capacity  of  a  boatsAvain.  At  Boston  he  fell  in 
company  with  Hay,  came  out  and  surveyed  the  land;  being- 
pleased  with  the  })rospects  of  taking  up  his  residence  here, 
he  returned  to  Boston,  got  permission  to  return  here  and 
live,  with  the  pi-omise  that  if  ever  called  foi-  to  go  on  an  ex- 
pedition against  the  enemy,  (French)  he  must  go.  To  this:; 
Gerrv  consented.     The  house  in  which  he  lived  stood  a  few 


rods  north  from  the  house  of  Benjamin  Gerry.  He  became 
acquainted  with  a  young  lady  in  Boston,  whom  he  married 
and  brought  to  this  place.  Gerry  is  said  to  have  been  a  man 
of  great  courage*  The  following  incident  will  prove  it  to  be 
the  fact.  At  that  time  this  country  was  inhabited  to  a  con- 
siderable extent  by  wolves.  On  a  certain  day,  Gerry  was  out 
either  for  labor  or  business.  He  called  upon  a  family,  living 
upon  or  near  where  the  Almshouse  now  stands,  about  dusk. 
It  was  thought  rather  dangerous  for  him  to  return  home ; 
'  however,  having  an  axe  with  him,  he  proceeded  homeward, 
but  before  proceeding  far,  he  came  in  contact  with  a  number 
of  wolves.  He  braced  himself  against  a  large  tree  ^nd 
ptiched  battle  with  his  antagonists.  The  neighbors  heard  the 
conflict,  notwithstanding  he  was  left  to  conquer  or  die.  He 
conquered,  and  returned  home.  In  the  morning  he  went 
to  the  place  where  he  fought,  and  there  found  that  he 
had  killed  no  less  than  four  wolves,  the  fifth  had  walked  off, 
leaving  blood  to  show  that  he  also  had  been  wounded.  The 
bounty  on  wolves  was  at  that  time  about  <£4  each.  Gerry 
remained  here  for  many  years,  but  was  called  upon  to  fulfill 
his  engagements,  made  previously  to  settling  here.  He  left 
his  wife  and  children,  never  to  return ;  as  it  is  said  he  fell 
during  an  engagement  with  a  foreign  enemy.  He  had  sev- 
eral sons.  One  settled  in  this  town,  another  went  to  Har- 
vard, and  another  to  Marblehead.  Elbridge  Gerry,  formerly 
governor  of  this  State,  and  vice-president  under  Mr.  Madi- 
son's administration,  is  said  to  have  been  a  member  of  this 
family. 

The  house  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Capt.  EufUs  Rich- 
ardson, was  built  many  years  ago,  and  formerly  owned  by  a 
man  named  AYiley;  afterwards  occupied  by  the  father  of 
Benjamin  Gerry.  The  house  owned  by  Elijah  Eichardson 
was  formerly  known  as  the  Matthews  place.  It  is  thought 
to  have  been  built  about  seventy  years  since.  An  ancient 
building  formerly  stood  a  few  rods  to  the  northeast  of  this ; 
and  for  a  considerable  length  of  time  was  supposed  to  be 
haunted.  A  family  lived  there  at  that  time.  At  the  season 
of  harvesting  a  quantity  of  pumpkins  were  carried  into  the 
garret;  one  evening  while  the  father  was  absent,  and  the 
mother  with  the  children  and  other  members  of  the  family 
sat  by  the  fireside,  a  noise  was  heard;  something  appeared 
to  be  coming  down  stairs.  It  came  stamp,  stamp,  down  the 
garret  stairs;  it  then  came  to  the  entry  stairs,  which  led  to 
the  lower  door,  and  with  increased  force,  came  pound,  pound, 
into  the  entry  below.    There  the  noise  ceased.    The  af- 


i 


frighted  family  waited  with  great  anxiety  for  the  return  of 
the  husband  and  father.  When  he  returned  the  news  was 
communicated  to  him.  He  repaired  to  the  entry,  when  on 
opening  the  door  a  good  lusty  pumpkin  was  reposing  on  the 
floor.  Whether  the  house  was  ever  afterwards  haunted,  is 
not  known.  The  house  of  Oliver  Kichardson  has  also  been 
built  for  seventy  or  eighty  years.  A  few  rods  to  the  north- 
east there  formerly  stood  an  ancient  building  occupied  by 
the  father  of  Oliver  Kichardson.  I  am  told  he  kept  bachelor's  , 
hall  for  many  years.  Something  like  seventy  or  eighty  rods 
northeast  from  this,  a  cellar  hole  shows  that  a  building  once 
stood  there;  and  still  further  to  the  north,  on  the  north  side 
of  the  road  leading  from  the  house  of  Caleb  WilBy  to  Mr. 
Leathers,  in  Woburn,  there  stood  an  ancient  building  called 
the  old  Farm  House.  For  some  length  of  time  a  negro 
named  Simon  Barjona,  lived  in  the  house.  He  was  a  shoe- 
maker by  trade,  and  Mr.  Elijah  Leathe,  who  was  a  neighbor 
to  him,  sometimes  employed  him  to  make  shoes  for  him.  On 
one  occasion  Mr.  Leathe  purchased  a  side  of  upper  leather 
and  also  a  side  of  sole  leather;  he  carried  them  to  Simon, 
requesting  him  to  make  him  a  pair  of  shoes.  The  shoes 
were  riiade  to  order.  Mr.  Leathe  did  not  take  home  his 
leather  with  him,  bnt  left  it  till  he  should  want  another  pair 
of  shoes  made.  When  his  family  were  again  in  want  of  more 
shoes,  he  repaired  to  Simon,  told  him  he  wished  for  a  pair, 
stating  the  size,  &c.  Simon  immediately  replied  that  he  had 
no  ludder.  No  leather,  says  Mr.  Leathe,  why,  did  I  not 
leave  leather  with  you.  Simon  immediately  rei^lied,  O  yes, 
massa  Leathe,  but  ludder  no  hold  out.  The  fact  was  he  had 
shod  his  children  from  time  to  time  as  they  needed ;  to  be 
sure  the  ludder  had  held  out  pretty  well  for  Simon,  but  it 
fell  short  indeed  as  far  as  Mr.  Leathe  was  concerned.  Simon 
had  several  children ;  I  see  the  record  of  three  baptized  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Carnes,  second  minister  in  this  town,  viz:  Abigail, 
Hannah,  and  Isaiah.  His  wife's  name  was  Hannah.  She 
was  frequently  called  old  Hannah  Qut.  She  is  said  to  have 
been  part  Mulatto  and  part  Indian  blood.  Simon  was  purely 
negro,  I  believe ;  though  it  is  stated  that  his  wife  said  on  a 
certain  occasion  that  he  was  nothing  but  a  brown  English- 
man. 

The  house  occupied  by  Caleb  Wiley  has  been  built  for 
many  years.  An  ancient  building  formerly  stood  a  short 
distance  to  the  northeast,  occupied  by  a  family  said  to  have 
been  murdered  by  the  Indians.  The  inhabitants  were 
alarmed  immediately  after  the  murder,  and  repaired  to  the 


house;  being  armed,  they  proceeded  in  search  of  the  mur- 
derers; about  one-third  of  a  mile  west  from  the  house  of 
Caleb  Wiley,  they  discovered  an  Indian  near  a  rock;  they 
fired  upon  and  killed  him;  they  also  found  seven  packs  near 
him,  from  which  circumstance  it  is  supposed  that  six  more 
were  in  company  with  him.  An  old  building  formerly  stood 
a  few  rods  east  of  the  house  now  owned  and  occupied  by 
Widow  Mirandi  Richardson.  The  year  when  it  was  built  is 
not  known.  An  ancient  building  also  stood  on  the  spot 
where  the  house  'of  Ephraim  Pierce  now  stands.  In  this 
building  the  father  of  Mr.  Pierce  lived  many  years.  The 
mother  of  Mr.  Pierce,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  formerly 
the  wife  of  Mr.  Ashael  Porter,  of  Woburn.  On  the  morn- 
ing of  the  ever  memorable  ,19th  of  April,  1775,  he  was  de- 
sired by  a  neighbor,  Josiah  Eichardson,  to  proceed  with  him 
towards  Lexington  (about  three  o'clock,  A.  M.).  Some- 
where on  the  way  they  discovered  some  British  Regulars. 
Porter  and  Richardson  were  also  seen  by  the  Regulars,  and 
were  taken  by  them.  Richardson  requested  permission  to 
return,  and  was  told  by  the  individual  to  go  to  another  per- 
son, who  would  no  doubt  give  him  a  release ;  but  in  case  the 
second  person  he  went  to  told  him  to  run  he  was  by  the 
first  ordered  not  to  run;  being  informed  that  if  he  did  run 
he  would  be  shot.  Richardson  did  as  he  was  told  to  do;  and 
though  he  was  told  to  run,  he  walked  away,  and  was  not  in- 
jured. The  reason  why  he  was  ordered  to  run  was  this: 
that  the  guard  might  think  him  a  deserter,  and  thereby,  in 
the  discharge  of  their  duty,  shoot  him.  Mr.  Porter  not  be- 
ing apprised  of  their  artifice  in  telling  him  to  run,  got  per- 
mission in  the  same  way  of  Richardson.  Having  liberty  to 
go,  he  sat  out  upon  the  run.  On  getting  over  a  wall  a  short 
distance  off,  he  was  fired  upon  and  received  his  death  wound. 
His  bones  now  lie  in  Lexington  with  the  seven  who  lell  on 
that  morning,  while  defending  their  rights  as  freemen. 

The  old  building  now  owned  by  Elias  P.  Bryant,  and  oc- 
cupied by  Phineas  Green,  was  formerly  owned  by  Kathan 
Simonds.  When  it  was  built  is  not  at  present  known.  The 
old  building  which  stood  something  like  sixty  rods  south 
from  Benjamin  Gerry's,  was  occupied  for  many  years  by 
David  Gerry.    It  was  burnt  down  about  twelve  years  since. 

On  the  top  of  Farm  Hill,  at  the  northwest  corner  of  the 
land  now  owned  and  improved  by  B.  F.  Richardson  and  B. 
F.  Tay,  there  stood  a  building  many  years  ago,  occupied  by 
a  man  named  Grover  Seollay.  A  rock  near  that  place,  is  at 
present  called  Scollay's  rock;  from  the  fact,  it  is  said,  of 


10 


Scollay's  being  in  the  habit  of  going  out  early  in  the  morn- 
ing and  sitting  upon  it,  whether  for  the  purpose  of  medita- 
tion or  to  view  the  surrounding  scenery,  I  cannot  tell. 

The  building  which  goes  by  the  name  of  the  Old  Office, 
has  been  standing  for  a  great  number  of  years.  How  it 
received  its  present  name  is  not  known ;  but  if  the  receiving 
and  drinking  of  rum  within  its  walls,  in  by-gone  days,  could 
give  it  this  title,  it  has  surel}^,  with  great  propriety,  been 
conferred  upon  it.  The  house  in  which  Capt.  David  Hay 
kept  tavern  for  many  years,  and  also  his  successor,  David  H. 
Burnham,  is  one  ot  the  oldest  buildings  iii  town.  Capt.  Hay 
for  many  years  had  a  negro  servant  named  Daniel  King- 
stone.  When  slavery  was  abolished  in  this  State,  Kingstone 
was  set  at  liberty,  with  the  rest;  but  unlike  some  of  his  south- 
ern brethern,  w^ho  take  their  liberty  without  permission,  he 
chose  to  spend  the  remnant  of  his  days  with  his  old  master. 
The  house  now  occupied  by  John  Wheeler,  and  owned  by 
Dea.  Reuben  Eichardson,  was  built  about  the  year  1776,  by 
Mr.  Thomas  Fosdick,  of  Charlestown.  The  house  occupied 
by  the  widow  of  the  late  Capt.  Jonathan  Hay,  was  built  in 
the  year  1725.  The  bricks  used  in  building  this  house  were 
drawn  over  the  eastern  ridge  of  Farm  Hill,  as  a  road  led  that 
way  previous  to  the  building  of  the  turnpike,  which  was  about 
thirty-eight  years  since.  In  the  house  before  spoken  of  the 
old  Scotchman,  Hay,  breathed  his  last.  The  building  he  lived 
in  previous  to  this  stood  a  few  rods  to  the  south.  He  died  in 
1748,  being  in  the  91st  year  of  his  age. 

During  his  life  time  he  is  said  to  have  married  no  less  than 
live  wives.  At  the  last  marriage  ceremony,  (which  took 
place  after  he  was  seventy  years  old,)  he  is  said  to  have  dis- 
played his  youthful  buo3^ancy,  by  dancing  on  the  occasion. 
About  a  quarter  of  a  mile  east  from  the  house  of  Widow 
Hay,  on  the  road  leading  to  South  Reading,  a  house  once 
stood,  occupied  by  a  man  named  Damon,  who  was  a  black- 
smith and  shovel  maker  by  trade.  The  house  occupied  by 
Walter  Blaisdell,  (known  as  the  Hay  Place,)  has  been  built 
about  thirty-eight  years.  The  building  owned  by  the  town, 
and  used  as  an  almshouse,  has  been  standing  for  a  great 
number  of  years;  it  was  formerly  owned  by  Mr.  John 
Cutler.  Mrs.  Cutler,  who  outlived  her  husband  by  several 
years,  bequeathed  to  the  church  the  sum  of  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, the  interest  only  to  be  spent  annually  for  the  benefit  of 
the  needy  members  of  the  church.  The  house  of  John  Jen- 
kins, is  an  ancient  building,  and  probably  has  stood  for  more 
than  a  hundred  years. 


11 

The  house  of  the  late  Daniel  Gould,  Esq.,  has  been  built 
tor  many  years ;  though  from  its  external  appearance,  having 
been  many  times  repaired,  one  would  suppose  that  it  was  not 
of  long  standing.  An  old  building  formerly  stood  where 
the  house  of  Capt.  Buck  now  stands,  known  as  the  Bryant 
Place.  Mr.  William  Bryant  states  that  for  three  or  four 
generations  back  from  his  father,  one  or  more  of  the  family 
were  blacksmiths  and  shovel  makers  b}'  trade. 

Two  Scotchmen  formerly  lived  in  that  section  of  the  town, 
named  Dunton,  and  Ingerson.  Dunton  was  a  trumpeter, 
and  belonged  to  the  troop  company  then  in  this  vicinity.  He 
is  said  to  have  adopted  the  practice  on  certain  occasions, 
(when  the  Indians  were  committing  their  depredations  in 
the  neighborhood,)  of  putting  his  trumpet  out  at  one  of  the 
windows  of  his  house  and  playing,  in  order  to  alarm  them. 
A  house  stood,  during  the  first  years  of  the  settlement  of  the 
town,  on  the  sp*ot  where  the  house  of  the  late  Daniel  Gould, 
Esq.,  now  stands.  In  this  house  one  of  his  ancestors  lived 
by  the  same  name,  Daniel  Gould.  He  held  the  office  of  cor- 
net in  the  troop  company,  amounting  to  about  the  same  as 
that  of  ensign  in  a  militia  company.  On  a  certain  morning, 
wishing  to  call  the  members  of  the  company  together  for 
the  purpose  of  going  to  capture  and  destroy  some  Indians, 
if  possible,  he  discharged  the  contents  of  a  pistol  into  the 
upper  part  of  his  house,  a  wad  it  is  supposed  set  the  building 
on  fire  and  reduced  it  to  ashes.  Several  individuals  at  that 
period  lived  in  the  northeast  section  of  the  town,  denomi- 
nated squatters.  This  name  has  particular  reference  to  those 
individuals  who  in  the  early  history  of  this  country  were  in 
the  habit  of  clearing  up  a  small  patch  of  ground  where  it 
should  convene  them.  Sometimes  they  would  remain,  pur- 
chase the  land,  and  also  buy  several  acres  adjoining.  But 
they  were  generally  under  the  necessity  of  soon  leaving 
their  temporary  abodes.  In  a  southerly  direction  from  the 
house  of  Israel  Kewhall,  there  was  formerly  a  tan  yard, 
some  remains  of  which  may  be  seen  at  the  present  day. 
The  house  of  Daniel  Green,  is  one  of  the  oldest  buildings  in 
town.    This  was  formerly  called  the  Souther  Place. 

I  find  a  record  made  by  KeV.  James  Osgood,  first  minister 
of  this  town,  of  a  church  meeting  being  held  at  the  house  of 
Mr.  Souther,  Nov.  2d,  1731.  The  house  now  owned  by 
the  Misses  Newhall,  was  occupied  by  Eev.  Mr.  Osgood;  when 
it  was  built  I  am  unable  to  say.  An  ancient  building  for- 
merly  stood  a  few  rods  east  from  the  house  of  William  A. 
Howe,  and  was  taken  down  by  him  in  the  year  1812.     Still 


12 


farther  to  the  east,  he  states,  a  building  once  stood.  This 
part  of  the  town  was  settled  at  an  earl}^  period.  Mr.  Eowe 
states  that  he  found,  but  a  few  years  since,  a  living  spring  of 
water — with  a  tub  in  it;  none  of  the  inhabitants  knew  any- 
thing with  regard  to  it.  The  tub  was  about  four  feet  from 
the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  was  found  in  ground  pre- 
viously supposed  to  be  destitute  of  springs. 

An  ancient  building  also  stood  where  the  house  of  Eeuben 
Locke  now  stands,  which  was  taken  down  about  the  year 
1820.  This  house  and  that  of  Mr.  Jenkins  were  both  built 
in  one  j^ear.  About  fift}^  rods  north  from  Mr.  Locke's  a 
house  formerl}^  stood,  on  what  is  now  called  Spring  Hill. 
The  name  of  the  man  who  lived  there,  is  said  to  have  been 
Kibby.  An  excellent  spring  of  water  on  the  north  side  of 
the  hill  is  called  Kibby  spring.  The  house  of  the  late  Capt. 
Daniel  Green  was  built  about  sixty  years  since.  An  ancient 
building  is  said  to  have  stood  a  few  rods  farther  to  the  east,  in 
which  Elder  Daniel  Green  lived  the  last  part  of  his  lifetime. 
He  was  elected  Elder  of  the  church  about  the  time  of  the 
settlement  of  the  Eev.  Mr.  Carnes,  which  took  place  in  the 
year  1746.  Elder  Green  formerly  lived  in  a  building  which 
stood  a  short  distance  southwest  from  the  house  of  Joseph 
Vinton.  This  building  or  one  standing  not  far  from  it,  was 
called  the  Wilson  House,  and  was  afterwards  moved  and 
placed  upon  a  cellar  a  few  rods  south  or  southeast  from  the 
house  of  E.  H.  Stearns;  it  was  taken  down  by  Major  Jesse 
Green,  something  like  thirty  years  since.  The  house  of 
Joseph  Yinton  has  been  built  about  fiftj^-six  years.  The 
building  formerly  standing  on  this  spot  was  destroyed  by  fire. 
The  house  of  Dr.  Levi  Gould  has  been  built  for  several  years. 
The  building  first  occupied  by  the  Yintons,  stood  near  this. 
The  house  of  John  and  William  Green  has  been  built  about 
forty  years.  Previous  to  the  building  of  this,  an  ancient 
building  stood  about  thirty  rods  to  the  northwest,  used  as  a 
garrison,  at  the  time  of  the  conquest  between  the  first  set- 
tlers and  the  Indians.  The  house  occupied  by  the  widow  of 
the  late  Johathan  Green  is  supposed  to  have  been  built 
about  the  year  1700.  Jonathan  Green,  who  lived  in  this 
house  was  one  of  the  first  settlers.  When  he  first  moved 
into  this  house  he  used  the  east  part  of  it  for  a  stable.  This 
man,  woman,  child  and  horse,  all  lodged  under  the  same  roof 
Green  was  also  a  member  of  the  troop  company,  and  often 
went  to  Groton  and  vicinity,  as  this  was  a  great  place  for  the 
destruction  of  the  Indians  by  the  early  settlers.  The  house 
now  occupied  by  Widow  Johnson  has  stood  for  a  g^eat  num- 


13 


ber  of  years.  Also  the  house  occupied  by  Mr.  Holt.  This 
was  formerly  owned  by  Mr.  Thomas  Green,  previous  to  that 
by  a  Mr.  Knight.  In  this  house  a  negro  named  Cato  died 
many  years  ago.  Cato  was  the  son  of  Simon,  a  negro  ser- 
vant of  Dea.  Green.  I  am  told  that  for  some  years  before 
his  death,  he  lived  during  the  summer  season*^  in  the  first 
school-house  ever  built  in  town,  which  stood  something  like 
fifteen  rods  southeast  from  Jacob  Gould's.  The  house  of 
ISTathaniel  Stevens  was  built  many  years  since  by  a  man 
named  John  Wright,  of  Charlestown.  A  short  distance 
northeast  from  the  house  of  said  Gould  a  building  formerly 
stood,  owned  by  a  man  named  Phillips,  who  is  said  to  have 
been  a  man  of  uncommon  courage.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  troop  company.  While  they  were  on  an  excursion  at  a 
certain  time  for  the  purpose  of  destroying  the  Indians,  some- 
where near  Concord  they  came  in  contact  with  a  company  of 
these  sons  of  the  forest,  skulking  in  a  rye  field.  Phillips  ^en- 
tered the  field  with  the  others;  he  was  cautioned  to  be  on  his 
guard.  He  immediately  answered  in  his  usually  decided 
way,  that  he  was  not  afraid  of  the  black  rogues.  Scarcely 
had  the  words  escaped  his  lips,  ere  a  musket  was  discharged. 
Phillips  received  a  fatal  wound,  sprung  several  feet  from  his 
horse  and  expired.  The  last  member  of  his  family  is  said  to 
have  died  about  twenty  years  since,  in  the  town  of  Maiden. 
The  house  of  Samuel  Brown  is  also  a  relic  of  antiquity.  For 
many  years  a  tavern  was  kept  there.  The  house  of  the  late 
Ebenezer  Bucknam  is  one  of  the  oldest  dwellings  standing ; 
this  was  the  place  of  rendezvous  during  the  time  of  the  Kev- 
olution.  The  house  occupied  by  Dea.  Jabez  Lynde,  and 
James  H.  Gould,  is  also  a  very  ancient  building.  It  was  for- 
merly owned  by  a  Scotchman  named  Maize.  Maize,  as  I  am 
informed,  came  to  this  country  (like  many  others  who  settled 
here)  on  board  a  war  ship.  One  night  as  the  vessel  lay  at 
anchor  somewhere  near  Boston,  Maize  resolved  to  desert. 
He  accordingly  bound  his  clothes  to  his  back,  leaped  from 
the  vessel,  and  swam  ashore.  He  came  out  here  and  took 
up  his  abode.  Subsequent  to  Maize,  an  Irishman  named 
Toler  came  in  possession  of  the  aforementioned  house.  He 
kept  a  kind  of  tavern  for  some  time,  also  selling  goods  of  va- 
rious descriptions.  It  is  said  that  previous  to  coming  to  this 
country  he  had  the  plague;  that  he  was  taken  in«a  very  sud- 
den manner.  One  report  is  that  he  dug  his  own  grave  and 
got  into  it,  expecting  soon  to  die,  but  that  the  ground  had 
the  wonderful  efficacy  of  removing  the  plague.  Another 
statement  made  is  that  the  attending  physician  opened  his 


14 


scull  and  inserted  a  small  piece  of  silver,  which  produced  a 
cure.  One  or  more  of  the  reports  are  no  doubt  true.  It 
has  also  been  said  that  an  individual  who  recovers  from 
this  dreadful  disease,  will  never  again  be  subjected  to  any 
disease,  but  that  such  persons  will  finally  die  of  old  age. 
This  was  verified  in  the  case  of  Toler,  who  lived  to  be  about 
ninety-four  years  old  and  at  last  died  in  his  chair,  apparently 
as  easily  as  he  would  have  gone  to  sleep.  He  had  a  slave 
named  Dinah,  who  waited  upon  him  to  the  end  of  his  days. 

Toler  used  to  teach  school  in  the  school-house  which  stood 
north  of  the  town  pound,  which  w^as  the  second  school-house 
built  in  town.  1  am  told  that  he  was  in  the  habit  of  send- 
ing  some  scholar  to  the  tavern  of  James  Hay,  (which  stood 
where  the  shoemaker's  shop  of  Jacob  Gould  now  stands,) 
about  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning,  to  get  a  glass  of  grog 
and  carry  it  to  the  school  room  for  him  to  drink.  What 
would  the  members  of  the  Cold  Water  army  say,  in  1843,  if 
sent  out  by  their  teacher  to  procure  a  glass  of  grog  for  him? 
Methinks  they  would  not  only  sing  "  away  the  bowl,"  but 
with  indignation  would  they  sing,  ^'  away,  away  the  teacher." 

After  the  death  of  Toler,  Capt.  Sanmel  Ingalls  kept  tavern 
in  that  house  for  several  years.  The  sign  first  stood  a  few 
feet  southwest  from  the  house.  The  sign  I  am  told  was 
painted  by  an  Indian  named  Sol,  Wamscott.  A  few  rods  to 
the  east  from  this  a  house  stood  many  years  ago  occupied  by 
a  family  named  Buck. 

The  house  of  James  Hadley,  1  am  told  was  built  many 
years  ago  by  a  man  named  Eben  Knight.  The  house  of  John 
Bucknam  I  am  told  was  built  by  a  man  named  Allen.  It 
has  been  built  for  more  than  a  hundred  years.  An  ancient 
building  formerly  stood  a  short  distance  south  or  southwest 
from  this,  occupied  also  by  a  man  named  Allen.  The  house 
of  Thomas  Gould  is  a  very  ancient  building.  It  was  stand- 
ing in  1714.  How  many  years  previous  to  that  is  not  known. 
It  is  probable  however,  that  it  has  stood  nearly  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years.  The  house  occupied  by  Timothy  Sprague 
has  been  built  about  sixty  years.  A  short  distance  south- 
west from  this  there  stood  a  building,  many  years  ago,  known 
as  the  Guard  House.  This  was  built  by  Timothy  Sprague, 
that  a  family  might  live  there  and  guard  the  dam,  by  which  he 
flowed  Spot  Pond,  as  it  had  been  several  times  taken  away.  It 
appears  that  several  persons  in  town  were  opposed  to  having 
Spot  Pond  meadows  flowed;  and  consequently  they  had  a 
good  deal  of  contention  with  Mr.  Sprague  at  different  times. 
They  frequently  went  to  law,  but  Sprague  was  generally 


15 


successful  iu  getting  the  case.  At  that  period,  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Jabez  Allen  lived  in  town.  He  is  said  to  have  been 
a  horse  thief,  and  also  well  skilled  in  all  kinds  of  roguery. 
He  was  in  the  habit  of  going  in  a  boat  to  the  dam,  for  the 
purpose  of  taking  said  dam  away.  He  also  took  his  gun  with 
him.  When  any  person  appeared,  to  drive  him  from  his  labor, 
he  would  get  into  his  boat  and  sail  to  a  small  island  near  by. 
On  a  certain  occasion  while  at  work  taking  away  the  dam, 
Sprague  approached  him,  with  orders  to  desist.  He  quickly 
got  into  his  boat  and  sailed  to  the  island.  His  gun  being 
loaded  with  buck  shot  he  discharged  the  contents  of  it  at 
Sprague,  He  was  wounded  in  one  or  both  of  his  legs.  Allen 
was  prosecuted.  What  his  punishment  was  at  this  time  1 
am  not  certain.  Either  at  this  time  or  for  some  other  offence 
he  was  sentenced  to  sit  upon  the  gallows  for  several  hours. 
This  being  as  agreeable  to  him  as  sitting  in  a  parlor,  he  oc- 
cupied his  time  in  making  poetry.  The  following  is  a  speci- 
men of  it 

Some  call  me  Jaby  Allen, 

And  others  they  call  me  Medes, 
And  here  I  ait  upon  the  gallows, 

For  all  my  evil  deeds. 

O  that  I  were  the  judge. 

Now,  in  poor  Juby's  carfe ; 
I'd  have  po  >r  Jaby  out  of  jail^ 

And  have  old  Tim  Sprague  in  his  place. 

Old  Cambridge  is  a  mighty  place 

For  learning  and  for  Knowledge, 
For  some  they  whip,  and  some  they  hang, 

And  some  they  send  to  College. ' 

•  Allen  at  length  became  so  bad  to  deal  with  that  he  wa» 
finally  sold  on  board  a  man  of  war.  The  captain  of  the  ves- 
sel having  heard  of  his  evil  deeds  told  him  on  a  certain  day- 
that  he  should  like  to  see  some  of  his  iniquitous  feats.  Allen 
with  a  good  deal  of  apparent  sobriety,  told  him  that  he  was 
not  in  the  habit  of  practicing  unlawful  deeds.  A  short  time 
after,  however,  Allen  got  a  handsaw  and  sawed  all  the  oars 
on  board  the  vessel  nearly  in  two,  with  the  exception  of  one 
pair.  When  a  convenient  oppprtunity  presented  itself  he 
took  a  small  boat  and  the  only  pair  of  oars,  (good  for  any 
thing,)  and  started  for  the  shore.  The  alarm  was  soon  given 
on  board,  that  one  had  deserted.  Orders  were  immediately 
given  to  have  the  boats  lowered,  which  was  done.  The  boats 
were  manned.  The  oars  on  being  used  went  crack,  crack, 
one  after  the  other,  till  they  were  all  used  up. '  This  being 
done,  they  fired  upon  Allen  a  few  times.    This  did  no  good. 


16 


Orders^ were  then  given  to  pour  a  broadside  upon  him;  but 
he  had  got  so  far  that  it  did  no  good,  and  thus  he  eftected  his 
escape. 

The  house  owned  and  occupied  by  the  widow  of  the  late 
Daniel  Bryant,  and  which  was  destroyed  by  fire  a  few  years 
since,  was  built  in  the  year  1805. 

The  old  Sprague  house,  so  called,  is  the  last  building  on 
the  old  road  to  Medford.  In  this  house  lived  Capt.  Samuel 
Sprague,  who  commanded  the  company  in  this  town,  during 
the  time  of  the  Revolution. 

The  eastern  section  of  the  house  owned  by  Joseph  Hurd, 
was  built  about  fifty  years  since  by  Nathan  Willey.  The 
western  part  of  said  house  was  put  up  by  Luther  Richard- 
son, Esq.,  in  1806.  The  building  which  goes  by  the  name  of 
Hurd's  old  factory,  was  built  in  the  year  1792.  It  was  first 
used  as  a  snufF  mill,  afterwards  enlarged  and  used  for  the 
purpose  of  manufacturing  satinets.  The  mill  owned  by 
Oliver  Wheeler,  was  built  in  1812.  It  is  used  for  grinding 
cinnamon,  ginger,  and  various  medicinal  articles.  The  house 
near  it  was  built  about  the  same  time.  The  house  occupied 
by  Mr.  Baldwin,  was  built  in  1803.  The  mill  near  the  house 
is  used  for  the  purpose  of  turning  various  articles.  On  this 
spot  (or  near  to  it,)  a  chocolate  mill  formerly  stood.  At  the 
northwest  from  Mr.  Baldwin's,  there  stood  a  building  many 
years  since  occupied  by  a  man  named  Anthony  Hadley.  A 
few  rods  northeast  from  Mr.  Baldwin's,  a  house  once  stood 
owned  by  Ebenezer  Bucknam. 

The  house  of  Asii  Holden  has  been  built  about  one  hun- 
dred years.  A  few  rods  north  from  this  an  Irishman  with 
his  wife  lived,  many  years  since.  He  finally  moved  to  the 
northerly  side  of  Doleful  Pond  (so  called),  cleared  up  about 
a  quarter  of  an  acre  of  ground,  and  lived  the  remainder  of 
his  days.  He  died  in  a  very  sudden  and  unexpected  manner, 
at  quite  an  advanced  age. 

A  house  formerly  stood  a  few  rods  southeast  from  the 
school-house  in  District  No.  4.  This  house  was  occupied  by 
a  man  named  Hadley.  The  circumstances  of  his  death  were 
as  follows :  He  with  his  son  had  been  to  Medford  on  some 
business;  he  did  not  return  homewards  till  night.  It  was  a 
cold,  stormy  evening  in  the  last  of  November,  or  the  first  of 
December.  On  his  return  home,  he  stopped  at  Mr.  David 
Gould's,  as  he  had  his  horse.  After  leaving  Mr.  Gould's,  he 
went  towards  home,  it  is  supposed,  (as  a  wallet  which  he  car- 
ried with  him  was  found  near  his  house,)  but  instead  of  turn- 
ing in  at  a  pair  of  bars  which  led  to  his  house,  he  turned  di- 


17 


rectly  back,  passed  Mr.  Gould's  house,  and  was  found  dead 
the  next  morning  near  the  bars,  where  we  now  turi|  in  to  go 
to  Sandy  Shore.  And  what  is  very  remarkable,  his  son  was 
found  dead  the  same  day,  in  a  clay  pit  in  Medford. 

Two  ancient  buildings  formerly  stood  near  where  the  house 
of  E.  H.  Stearns  now  stands.  About  half  a  mile  northeast 
from  the  house  of  said  Stearns,  an  ancient  building  formerly 
stood  occupied  by  a  family  named  Howe.  An  old  orchard 
near  where  the  house  stood,  still  retains  the  name  of  Howe 
orchard.  About  one-third  of  a  mile  west  from  this  there 
formerly  stood  a  house  occupied  by  a  family  named  Fensom. 
It  was  afterwards  occupied  by  a  man  named  Daniel  Connery, 
who  married  one  of  the  Fensom  family.  It  was  for  a  long 
time  called  Connery's  den.  What  kind  of  beasts  inhabited 
there,  is  not  exactly  known.  One  thing  is  pretty  certain, 
however,  which  is,  that  the  lion,  rum,  was  one  of  the  most 
ferocious  among  them. 

I  have  now  attempted  to  give  an  account  of  those  buildings 
concerning  which  there  is  no  date  with  regard  to  the  time  ot 
their  erection.  I  have  also  given  some  incidents  connected 
with  the  inhabitants  who  lived  in  them. 

This  town  was  incorporated  in  the  year  1725.  The  follow- 
ing is  the  Act  of  incorporation. 

An  Act  for  Dividing  the  Town  of  Charlestown,  and  Erect- 
ing a  New  Town  there  by  the  name  of  Stoneham. 
WHEEEAS  the  Northerly  Part  of  the  Town  of  Charles- 
town,  within  the  County  of  Middlesex  is  competently 
tilled  with  Inhabitants,  who  labor  under  great  Difficulties  by 
their  Remoteness  from  the  Place  of  Publick  Worship,  &c. 
And  have  thereupon  made  their  Application  to  the  said 
Town  of  Charlestown,  and  have  likewise  Addressed  this 
Court  that  they  may  be  set  off  a  distinct  and  separate  Town, 
and  be  Vested  with  all  the  Powers  and  Privileges  of  a  Town, 
and  the  Inhabitants  of  Charlestown  by  their  Agents  having 
Consented  to  their  bein^  set  off  accordingly ;  And  a  Commitee 
of  this  Court  having  Viewed  the  Northerly  Part  of  the  said 
Town  of  Charlestown,  and  reported  in  favor  of  the  Petition- 
ers: 

Be  it  therefore  Enacted  by  the  Lieutenant  Governour, 
Council  and  Representatives,  in  General  Court  Assembled, 
and  by  the  Authority  of  the  same.  That  the  Northerly  part 
of  the  said  Town  of  Charlestown :  That  is  to  say.  All  the 
Lands  lying  on  the  East  side  of  Woburn,  the  South  side  of 
Reading,  the  West  side  of  Maiden,  and  the  North  side  of  the 


18 

Fifth  Kange  of  the  First  Division  of  Charlestown  Wood-lots, 
be  and  hereby  is  set  oft'  and  constituted  a  separate  Township 
by  the  name  of  Stoueham.  And  that  the  bounds  and  limits  of 
the  said  town  of  Stoneham  be  according  to  the  Agreement 
made  in  November,  One  thousand  seven  hundred  and  twen- 
ty-five, by  and  between  the  Committee  or  Agents  for  and  in 
l)ehalf  of  the  said  Town^of  Charlestown,  and  the  Petitioners 
of  the  Northerly  part  thereof,  wherein  it  was  consented  and 
agreed,  That  the  Five  Ranges  or  Remaining  Part  of  the  said 
first  Division  do  remain  to  the  Town  of  Charlestown,  agree- 
able to  a  former  Grant  to  the  Town  made  in  the  year  1657-8. 
And  that  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Northerly  half  of  Charles- 
town should  have  and  enjoy  that  Tract  of  Land  lying  in  the 
bounds  aforesaid,  commonly  called  and  known  by  the  Name 
of  Gould's  Farm,  now  under  Lease  to  Messieurs  Thomas  and 
Daniel  Gould,  containing  One  hundred  and  ten  Acres,  or 
thereabouts:  Also  one -half  of  all  the  Town's  Meadow  (and 
Upland)^  lyiuLg  on  Spot  Pond,  both  for  Quantity  and  Qual- 
ity, containing  Seventy-nine  Acres  (by  Capt.  Burnap's  Plat) 
as  an  Estate  in  Fee,  with  an  equal  Share  in  Spot  Pond;  the 
said  Lands  or  the  value  thereof  to  be  improved  for  the  Set- 
tling and  maintaining  an  Orthodox  Minister,  to  dispense  the 
Word  and  Ordinances  among  them:  The  Inhabitants  of  the 
said  northerly  half  of  Charlestown  being  by  virtue  of  the 
said  Agreement  to  be  debarred  from  any  Claims  or  Demands 
of  and  to  any  Lands,  Money,  Rents,  or  Incomes  of  whai 
kind  soever,  which  now  are  or  shall  belong  to  the  Town  ol 
Charlestown,  as  well  those  several  Farms  and  Land  lying 
within  the  bounds  abovesaid,  as  all  other  Estate  or  Income 
either  Real  or  Personal,  and  from  all  Demands  for  High- 
Ways,  that  so  the  Town  of  Charlestown  may  quietly  and 
peaceably  enjoy  the  same:  And  further  is  it  to  be  understood, 
That  none  of  the  Land  contained  in  the  two  Ranges  and 
half  belonging  to  the  first  Division,  shall  on  any  pretence 
whatsoever  be  Assessed  or  Taxed  by  the  said  Town  of  Stone- 
ham,  except  those  Lands  that  shall  be  put  under  Improve- 
ment, such  as  Mowing,  Plowing,  and  Pasturing. 

And  be  it  further  Enacted  by  the  Authority  aforesaid, 
That  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Northerl}^  half  of  Charlestown, 
living  within  the  bounds  aforesaid,  be  and  hereby  are  Vested 
with  the  Powers,  Privileges  and  Immunities  that  the  Inhab- 
itants of  any  of  the  Towns  of  this  Province  by  Law  are  or 
ought  to  be  Vested  with :  And  that  the  Inhabitants  of  the 
said  Town  of  Stoneham  do  within  the  space  of  two  Years 
from  the  Publication  of  this  Act,  Erect  and  Finish  a  suitable 


19 


House  for  the  Public  Worship  of  God,  and  as  soon  as  may 
be  procure  and  settle  a  Learned,  Orthodox  Minister  of  good 
Conversation,  and  make  provision  for  his  comfortable  and 
honorable  Support;  and  likewise  provide  a  School  Master  to 
Instruct  their  Youth  in  Writing  and  Keading;  and  that 
thereupon  they  be  discharged  from  any  Payments  for  the 
Maintenance  of  the  Ministry  and  School  in  the  Town  of 
Charlestown. 

Provided,  That  the  Inhabitants  ot  Stonehain,  nevertheless 
are  to  pay  their  respective  proportion  to  two  several 
Assessments  already  made  by  the  Assessors  of  Charlestown 
for  County  and  Town  Charges ;  and  David  Gould,  one  of  the 
present  Constables  ot  Charlestown,  is  required  to  Collect  and 
Pay  in  such  Parts  and  Proportions  of  each  of  said  Assess- 
ments, as  are  committed  to  him  by  the  said  Assessors  of 
Charlestown,  according  to  the  Powers  and  Directions  in  the 
Warrants  duly  made  and  delive'd;  Anything  in  this  Act  to 
the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

This  town  I  am  told  took  its  name  from  a  town  called 
Stoneham  in  England.  On  Tuesday,  March  22d,  1725,  the 
committee  from  the  town  of  Charlestown,  met  a  committee 
chosen  by  this  town  and  set  the  bounds  as  follows.  Begin- 
ning at  Holden's  line. 

1st.    A  heap  of  stones,  the  west  side  of  a  little  cedar. 

2d.    A  heap  of  stones. 

3d.     A  large  red  oak. 

4th.    A  small  tall  white  oak  with  a  crotch. 

5th.     A  tall  walnut. 

6th.    A  white  oak  with  a  crotch  near  the  top. 

7th.  A  young  white  oak  with  a  crotch  about  half  way  up, 
on  the  west  side  of  a  hill  east  from  Spot  Pond. 

8th.  A  heap  of  stones  near  a  small  white  oak,  within 
twelve  rods  of  the  east  side  of  the  pond. 

9th.    A  tall  walnut  about  twenty  rods  south  of  the  pond. 

10th.  A  dead  white  oak  stump,  about  twelve  rods  west  of 
the  pond,  with  a  heap  of  stones  about  it. 

11th.    A  red  oak  on  the  north  side  of  a  cliffc  of  rocks. 

12th.  A  young  walnut  with  a  heap  of  stones  about 
twelve  rods  east  of  Turkey  .  Swamp. 

13th.  .  A  large  red  oak  about  six  rods,  near  Turkey 
Swamp. 

14th.  A  heap  of  stones  upon  a  flat  rock  about  twenty  rods 
west  of  Turkey  Swamp. 

15th.    A  pine  tree  on  a  rocky  hill. 


20 

16th.  A  heap  of  stones  with  a  stake  against  a  stone  vvalJ 
upon  Woburn  line. 

The  trees  are  marked  on  the  south  side  with  C,  and  on  the 
north  side  with  S.  A  true  recoixi  of  the  bounds  between 
Charlestown  and  Stoneham. 

DANIEL  GOULD,  Town  Clerk. 

The  town  of  Woburn  was  first  settled  in  1640.  The  bounds 
between  this  town  and  Eeading  were  of  a  more  definite 
character.    Beading  was  also  settled  in  1640. 

As  certain  lands  were  reserved  by  Charlestown  in  the  act 
of  incorporation,  it  may  be-  well  to  state,  that  the  farms  of 
Caleb  Wiley,  widow  Mirandi  Eichardson,  and  Ephraim 
Pierce,  were  included  in  the  reserved  portions  of  land.  The 
town  of  Charlestown  relinquished  their  title  to  these  lands 
about  forty  years  since. 

The  first  public  meeting  held  for  business  by  this  town  wa?^ 
on  December  24th,  1725.  Timothy  Bolden,  Sen.,  was  chosen 
moderator,  and  Daniel  Gould  was  chosen  Town  Clerk.  At 
this  meeting  they  voted  to  build  a  meeting  house.  For  this 
purpose  they  chose  a  committee  to  examine  the  meetini: 
house  at  Lynn  End.  The  dimensions  of  the  house  were  to 
be  36  feet  in  length  and  32  feet  in  with.  They  however 
afterwards  concluded  to  have  it  40  feet  in  length  and  36  feet 
in  width,  with  20  foot  posts.  The  committee  chosen  to  exam- 
ine the  meeting  house  at  Lynn  End  were  Jonathan  Green, 
Daniel  Gould,  and  Daniel  Gould,  Jr.  The  committee  to 
prepare  materials  for  building,  consisted  of  Capt.  John  Yin- 
ton,  Daniel  Gould,  Jr.,  and  Lieutenant  Timothy  Wright. 
This  committee  were  also  instructed  to  procure  the  spot  of 
land  on  which  to  set  the  meeting  house;  also  a  place  to  build 
a  Parsonage,  and  likewise  provide  a  burying  ground.  The 
first  board  of  Selectmen,  consisted  of  Capt.  Benjamin  Gerry. 
Capt.  John  Yinton,  Peter  Hay,  Timothy  Bolden,  and  Lieuten- 
ant Timothy  Wright.  Por  many  years  five  persons  consti- 
tuted the  board  of  Selectmen.  I  am  told  however,  that 
they  served  without  any  compensation.  At  a  meeting  held  on 
the  16th  day  of  March,  1726,  they  voted  to  raise  £120  towards 
defraying  the  expense  of  building  the  meeting-house.  It  is 
said  there  was  a  good  deal  of  contention  with  regard  to 
the  location  of  the  house,  some  being  very  anxious  to  have  it 
stand  on  the  plain  somewhere  near  the  house  ot  Reuben  Locke. 
They  however  finally  voted  to  have  it  stand  between  the 
black  oak  tree  and  the  red  oak  tree  upon  the  hill  near  the 
end   of  the   school -house.     It  was    raised    about    the    last 


21 


of  Xovember,  1726.  The  following  are  some  of  the  iteiii?* 
of  expense  connected  with  the  raising  of  the  meeting 
house. 

.     Paid  for  five  gallons  of  rum,  J£l,  00s.,  6d. 
"    "  bread,    0,  12,    0. 

'-  Capt.  Gerry,  for  cider,      0,  15,    0. 

The  lime  used  in  building  was  taken  from  the  marble  pit 
now  owned  bv  Joseph  Hurd,  situated  at  the  southwest  part  of 
the  town.  There  are  two  pits  open  at  the  present  time.  The 
western  pit  is  said  to  have  been  open  from  time  immemoriaL 
The  former  practice  of  removing  the  marble  to  make  lime,  was 
that  of  making  a  fire  in  the  pit,  thereby  rendering  it  more 
susceptible  of  impression  from  the  tools  made  use  of  for  remo- 
vmg  it.  Marble  of  an  excellent  quality  might  still  be  obtain- 
ed there  were  it  not  that  the  expense  of  getting  it  out  would 
outweigh  its  value  when  ready  for  use.  This  pit  lies  north 
from  what  is  now  called  Bear  Hill.  This  was  formely  called 
Bears  Hill,  from  the  fact  of  its  having  been  a  noted  place  for 
the  residence  of  those  animals.  Gov.  Winthrop  states  in  his 
history  of  Massachusetts,  that  he  was  travelling  this  way  on 
a  certain  occasion,  and  stopped  upon  Bears  Hill,  to  rest  and 
refresh  himself  with  food.  On  examining  for  his  provisions  it 
seems  his  servant  forgot  to  put  up  anything  but  some  cheese, 
from  which  circumstance  he  called  Bear  Hill  Cheese  Bock, 
He  also  gave  to  Spot  Pond  its  present  name,  from  having  s(» 
many  islands,  rocks,  &c.,  in  it. 

The  town  burying  ground  originally  contained  one-fourth 
of  an  acre.  It  was  afterwards  enlarged  to  its  present  size, 
which  is  about  one  acre.  The  land  to  enlarge  it  was  pro- 
cured of  Mr.  James  Hay. 

At  a  general  town  meeting  held  Oct.  14, 1754,  the  following 
votes  were  passed : 

Voted,  That  the  town  will  seat  the  negroes  in  Stoneham, 
in  Stoneham  meeting-house. 

Voted,  That  the  negro  men  in  Stoneham  shall  set  in  the 
hind  seat  in  the  side  gallery,  in  the  west  end  of  Stoneham 
meeting-house,  and  the  negros'  wives  and  other  negro  wo- 
men shall  set  i|i  the  hind  seat  in  the  side  gallery,  in  the  east 
end  of  said  meeting-house,  and  nowhere  else  in  said  meeting- 
house if  there  be  convenient  room  in  said  seats,  except  it  be 
on  special  occasions. 


22 


The  old  road  leading  to  Medford  was  built  about  the  j^ear 
1731,  at  least  that  branch  of  it  passing  near  the  house  of 
Joseph  Hurd,  a  short  distance  east  from  Spot  Pond.  The 
road  passing  through  what  is  called  the  meeting-house 
swamp,  has  also  been  built  about  one  hundred  years.  A  path 
formerly  led  over  what  is  now  called  the  old  flat  logs,  about 
fifty  rocis  south  from  the  present  causeway,  leading  through 
said  meeting-house  swamp.  In  1760  the}^  voted  to  choose  a 
committee  to  meet  with  committees  that  might  be  chosen 
by  the  towns  of  Reading  and  Woburn,  for  the  purpose  of 
building  a  work-house  lor  the  benefit  of  said  towns.  What 
the  result  of  their  meeting  was  I  have  not  ascertained, 
though  the  probability  is,  that  they  were  not  successful  in 
their  proposed  union.  They  also  about  this  time  voted  to 
raise  the  sum  of  £6(5  18s.  and  4d.,  for  the  purpose  of  repairing 
the  meeting-house.  It  was  accordingly  newly  shingled,  new 
windows  put  in,  &c. 

It  was  customary  at  that  time  when  children  were  taken 
into  a  family  to  be  brought  up,  (or  even  to  remain  a  few 
months,)  to  give  notice  of  the  same  to  the  Selectmen.  The 
following  is  a  copy  of  the  same:  "Gentlemen,  Selectmen,  of 
the  town  of  Stoneham,  these  lines  are  to  inform  or  notify  you, 
that  I  have  this  day  taken  into  my  house  one  Catherine 
Clentick  to  live  with  me  for  her  work,  she  is  about  twelve 
years  old.  As  to  her  circumstances,  she  has  a  father  to  take 
care  of  her."  !N'otices  of  this  kind  seem  to  have  been  given, 
in  order  that  the  town  might  be  apprized  of  the  fact,  that 
they  might  possibly  have  accession  to  the  list  of  paupers, 
from  time  to  time,  as  the  case  might  be.  It  was  also  cus- 
tomary when  an  individual  came  into  town  to  live,  to  warn 
them  to  leave  in  so  many  days.  It  seems  a  law  of  this  kind 
was  framed  so  that  each  town  might  be  on  their  guard,  as 
it  respected  paupers. 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  a  record  of  this  kind:  Stone- 
ham,  Nov.  20th,  1772.  Ebenezer  Eichardson  was  warned  out 
of  Stoneham,  and  the  place  he  came  from  was  Boston.  And 
the  persons  hereafter  mentioned,  Ebenezer  Williams  and  his 
wife  Elizabeth  and  their  son  Ebenezer.  The  place  from 
whence  they  came  last  is  Reading.  It  is  understood  that 
if  they  were  natives  of  Reading,  it  would  belong  to  Read- 
ing to  support  them.  If  they  were  not  natives  of  Reading, 
and  Reading  neglected  to  warn  them  out,  they  would 
still  have  them  to  maintain  in  case  they  became  paupers. 
But  if  Reading  had  warned  them  out,  they  would  have  no 
difficulty  whatever  with  regard  to  the  case. 


23 


At  a  meeting  held  on  the  lirst  day  of  November,  1774,  the 
following  patriotic  resolves  were  passed.  The  preamble 
reads  thus: 

We  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Stoneham  being  legally 
assembled,  sincerely  declare  our  strict  attachment  to  the  Con- 
stitution of  our  nation;  and  our  unfeigned  loyalty  to  our  Kight- 
ful  Lord  and  Sovereign  King,  George  the  Third ;  ardently  wish- 
ing that  we  might  ever  live  in  the  utmost  harmony  with  Great. 
Britain.  Yet  we  are  driven  to  the  disagreeable  necessity  to 
say;  that  having  taken  into  serious  consideration  the  preca- 
rious state  of  the  liberties  of  NorMi  America,  and  more 
especially  the  present  distressed  condition  of  this  insulted 
Province,  embarrassed  as  it  is  by  several  acts  of  the  British 
Parliamentary  vending,  as  we  apprehend  to  the  entire  subver- 
sion of  our  natural  and  charter  rights,  among  which  is  the 
act  of  blocking  up  the  harbor  of  Boston;  therefore  we  do 
solemnly  covenant  and  engage  with  each  other: 

1st.  That  we  will  henceforth  suspend  all  commercial  in- 
tercourse with  Great  Britan  until  they  shall  afford  us  relief. 

2d.  That  we  will  not  buy,  purchase,  or  consume  any  goods 
or  merchandize,  which  shall  arrive  in  America  from  Great 
Britain,  from  and  after  the  last  day  of  September  ensuing. 

These  things  we  solemnly  promise  to  observe,  provided,  no 
better  scheme  shall  be  devised  to  answer  the  same  end,  by 
the  Congress,  who  are  to  meet  at  Philadelphia  to  consult  the 
general  political  interests  of  America. 

The  town  held  another  meeting  subsequent  to  the  meeting 
of  Congress,  when  they  voted  to  accept  the  doings  of  said 
Congress  in  all  respects. 

I  have  before  stated  that  the  house  ol  Dea.  Ebenezer 
Bucknam  was  the  place  of  rendezvous,  during  the  time  of 
the  Eevolution.  I  am  told  the  town  voted  on  a  certain  occa- 
sion that  no  gun  should  be  discharged  in  town,  except 
under  the  following  rule :  a  certain  number  were 
chosen  as  minute  men.  The  first  person  that  received  an 
alarm  was  immediately  with  two  or  more  individuals  to  repair 
to  the  common,  front  of  the  old  meeting  house.  The  dis- 
charge of  the  muskets  in  succession  was  considered  as  a  gen- 
eral alarm,  when  the  members  of  the  company  were  immedi- 
ately to  repair  to  the  place  of  rendezvous.  The  company 
in  this  town  were  called  out  at  the  time  of  the  battle  of 
Lexington.  It  will  be  remembered  Samuel  Sprague 
was  commander  of  the  company.  He  however  previous  to 
reaching  Lexington  told  the  members  of  the  company,  that 


24 

their  numbers  were  so  small  that  he  thought  it  would  be  well 
to  separate  and  each  one  look  out  for  himself.  They  accord- 
ingly separated  into  companies  oi  three  or  four,  and  scatter- 
ed themselves  abroad.  Edward  Bucknam,  Timothy  Mat- 
thews, and  James  Willey  went  in  company  together.  Some- 
where in  the  vicinity  of  Lexington  they  were  discovered  by 
some  British  Eegulars.  A  bullet  passed  between  the  left 
ear  and  skull  of  Bucknam,  also  through  the  hats  of  both 
Matthews  and  Willey.  Thus  did  our  fathers  expose  their 
health  and  lives  that  we  might  enjoy  the  blessings  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty.       • 

It  will  be  remembered  that  while  speaking  of  the  several 
buildings  and  their  inhabitants,  I  spoke  of  a  family  by  the 
name  of  Connery.  After  his  decease,  in  the  year  1776,  a  part 
or  all  of  his  family  came  upon  the  town.  The  following  is  the 
copy  of  an  indenture  by  which  the  Selectmen  of  the  town 
bound  out  Abigail  Connery. 

This  Indenture  Witnesseth,  That,  Samuel  Sprague,  Gentleman,  and  Timo- 
thy Taylor  Daniel  Gouhl  Jun'r.  Timothy  Wright  Jun'r.  and  Peter  Hay  Jun'r. 
jreomen,  all  of  the  town  of  Stoneham  in  the  County  of  middlesex  and  prov- 
mce  of  the  massachusetts  Bay  in  New-England  and  Selectmen  of  Said  town 
So  far  forth  as  our  power  doth  will  or  may  Extend  as  Selectmen,  by  and  with 
the  assent  of  two  Justices  of  the  Peace  in  said  County  Have  (agreeable  to  the 
trust  by  Law  to  us  Committed)  put  and  Bo^nd  and  by  these  presents  Do  put 
place  and  Bind  Abigail  Connery  (Daughter  of  Daniel  Connery  Deceased)  a 
poor  Garl  Belonging  to  Said  town  apprintice  to  Jonathan  Green  of  the  town 
of  Stoneham,  aforesaid  Gentleman,  and  his  wife  to  Learn  to  Spin  net  and 
Sow  and  with  him  the  said  Johnathan  Green  and  his  wife  after  the  manner  of 
an  apprentice  to  Serve  from  the  Day  of  the  Date  hereol  for  and  Dureing  the 
term  of  ten  years  Eleven  months  ^nd  twenty-seven  Days  (until  she  comes  to 
the  age  of  Eighteen  years)  to  be  Compleat  and  Ended  during  all  which 
Said  term  the  Said  apprentice  her  said  master  and  mistress  faithfully  shall 
Serve  their  Secrets  keep  and  Lawful  Commands  Gladly  Every  where  Obey 
she  shall  Do  no  Damage  to  her  Said  master  or  mistress  nor  see  it  to  be  done 
hy  others  without  Letting  or  Giveing  notice  thereof  to  her  said  master  or 
mistress  She  Shall  not  waiste  her  said  masters  or  mistresses  Goods  nor 
Lend  them  to  anv  She  shall  not  Commit  fornification,  nor  contract  matri- 
mony within  said  term,  at  Cards  dice  or  other  unlawfull  Game  She  shall 
not  play  Whereby  her  said  master  or  mistress  may  have  Damage  with  their 
Goods  nor  the  Goods  of  others  She  shall  not  absent  her  Sell  by  Day  or  by 
night  from  her  said  masters  or  mistresses  Service,  without  their  Leave  nor 
haunt  ale  houses  taverns  or  play  houses  but  in  all  things  behave  herself  as 
a  faithful  apprentice  ought  to  Do  towards  her  said  master  and  mistress 
Dureing  said  term  of  ten  years  Eleven  months  and  twenty  seven  days  (un- 
til she  comes  to  the  age  of  Eighteen  years)  and  the  said  Jonathan  Green  for 
himself  and  his  wife  doth  hereby  Covenant  and  promise  to  teach  and  In- 
struct or  cause  to  be  taught  and  instructed  in  the  art  or  traid  of  Spinning 
netting  and  Sowing  (common  work)  by  proper  ways  or  means  (if  the  said 
apprentice  be  capable  to  Learn)  finding  unto  said  apprentice  Good  and 
Sufficient  meat  Drink  washing  and  Lodging  both  in  Sickness  and  helth 
Dureing  said  term,  and  at  the  Expiration  thereof  to  Give  unto  the  said  ap- 
prentice two  Suits  of  apparrel  both  wooling  and  Linning  fitting  for  all 
parts  of  her  Body  one  of  Said  Suits  fitting  and  proper  for  Lords  Days  and 
the  other  of  Said  Suits  fitting  and  Suteable  for  common  and  working  Days 
Suteable  for  such  an  apprentice  and  also  jwithin  Said  term  teach  her  the 


25 


said  apprentice;  to  Read  In  Testimony  whereol  the  parties  to  the«e  present)': 
have  hereiiDto  Interchangeably  Set  their  hands  and  Seals  the  Sixth  Bay  (r 
may  in  the.  Sixteenth  year  of  his  majesties't:  Reign,  anuaque  Domini  oih. 
thousand  Seven  hundred  and  Seventv  Six. 

J^ned  Sealed  and  Delivered   )  SAMUEL,  SPKAGUK 

•^      in  presence  of  us  i  TIMOTHY  TAYLER 

DAVID  GREEN  PeShA y'^un'^^^^     '""^  • 

JONATHAN  Green  Jun'r  Pli.ll<.K  HAA  Jun  r 

Middlesex:  ss:  May«:  1770.— We  the  subscribers,  two  of  the  Justices  o' 
the  Peace,  Do  alow  of  and  consent  to  the  binding  out  of  the  said  Abigai > 
Conery  to  the  said  Jonathan  Green. 
(Signed)  David  Gkeen,  Thad's  Mason,  Justices  of  Peace. 

With  many  of  the  transactions  of  our  grandfathers  and 
great  grandfathers  we  are  much  amused.  On  one  occasion 
they  voted  at  a  town  meeting  that  it  was  not  expedient  to 
make  use  of  a  bass  viol  during  singing  on  the  Sabbath.  The 
reason  for  such  an  act  was,  that  the  bass  viol  was  a  species 
of  fiddle,  and  as  the  fiddle  or  violin  was  made  use  of  at. 
balls  and  parties  it  was  therefore  argued  to  be  wrong  to  use 
tlie  bass  viol  on  the  Sababth. 

1  proceed  now  to  give  an  account  of  the  various  buildings 
which  have  been  put  up  at  different  times,  or  rather  to  state 
when  they  were  put  up.  This  statement  includes  all  the 
buildings  in  town  with  the  exception  of  those  before  men- 
tioned. The  earliest  date  of  the  erection  of  a  dwelling 
house  is  that  of  the  house  occupied  b}^  Dea.  David  and  Zach- 
eous  Gerry,  which  it  is  supposed  was  built  in  the  year  1708, 
as  a  brick  having  this  date  upon  it  was  taken  from  a  jamb 
of  one  of  the  fireplaces  about  forty  years  since.  In  1747  the 
house  owned  and  occupied  by  the  Rev.  John  H,  Stevens,  was 
built  for  the  use  of  Rev.  Mr.  Carnes,  second  minister  in  this 
town.  In  the  year  1756,  the  house  of  Capt.  John  H.  Wright, 
and  the  old  house  torn  down  by  Allen  Rowe,  a  few  yearf 
since,  were  both  built.  Both  are  said  to  have  been  raised  in 
one  day.  A  large  concourse  of  people  were  present  to  wit- 
ness  the  raising  of  the  buildings.  In  1781  one  house  wa« 
built;  in  1792,  1;  in  1795,  1;  in  1799,  1;  in  1802,  1;  in  1804, 
I;  in  1806,2;  in  1807,2;  in  1809,2;  in  1812,4;  in  1813,1; 
in  1816,  4;  in  1817,  Mr.  Robert  Barnes  built  the  house  now 
occupied  by  Richard  R.  Barnes.  His  work  at  the  commence- 
ment was  nearly  as  laborious  as  that  of  the  first  settlers; 
having  to  perform  the  hard  labor  of  •cutting  and  removing 
trees,  stumps,  &c.  He  lived  but  a  few  years  to  enjoy  the 
fruit  of  his  labors^  In  1819, 3  houses  were  built.  In  1820,1 ;  in 
1821,  3;  in  1822,  2;  in  1823,  2;  in  1825, 1;  in  1826, 1;  in  1827, 
I;  in  1828,  2;  in  1829,  3;  in  1830,  3;  in  1831,  4;  in  1832,  2;  in 
1833,  2:  in  1834,  4;  in  1835,  2;   in  1836,  10;   in  1837,  5;   in 


26 


1838,  5;  in  1839,  3;  in  1840,  7;  in  1841, 8;  in  1842,  5;  in  1843, 
up  to  August  1st,  but  1. 

The  number  of  dwelling-houses  that  have  been  built  in 
town  since  its  settlement  is  about  200.  At  present  the  nunji- 
ber  is  160.  If  I  include  several  shops  which  have  been  fitted 
up  for  dwelling-houses,  it  makes  the  number  about  170. 

Previous  to  building  the  Andover  and  Medford  turnpike 
for  about  60  years,  from  60  to  70  buildings  were  all  that 
stood  in  town,  and  the  population  varied  but  little  if  any 
during  that  period  of  time. 

There  have  been  11  school-houses  built  at  different  times. 
The  town  house  was  built  in  1826,  and  moved  to  where  it 
now  stands  in  1833. 

The  first  meeting  house,  it  will  be  remembered,  w^as  built 
in  1726.  I  find  no  record  of  any  dedication  services,  though 
no  bt  there  were  appropriate  services  when  they  first 
assembled  in  it  for  public  worship.  The  meeting  house  which 
was  destroyed  by  fire  on  Sunday,  Jan.  5th,  1840,  was  raised  on 
Wednesday  and  Thursday,  the  29th  and  30th  days  of  June, 
1803.  It  was  completed  and  dedicated  on  the  14th  day  ol 
December  following.  The  exercises  on  the  occasion  were  as 
follows :  The  Rev.  Mr.  Reynolds  of  Wilmington  made  the  first 
prayer.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Sanborn,  of  Reading,  made  the  dedica- 
tory prayer;  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stevens,  pastor,  preached  the  ser- 
mon, from  Haggai,  2d  chap.,  7th  verse :  "I  will  fill  this  house 
with  glory."  The  Sabbath  previous  to  this,  Mr.  Stevens 
preached  a  farewell  sermon  to  the  old  meeting  house,  and 
the  day  after  the  dedication  of  the  new^  house,  the  people 
assembled  together  and  took  it  dow^n ;  it  having  been  the 
place  for  the  public  worship  of  God,  for  77  years.  In  1840 
two  neat  and  commodious  meeting  houses  were  erected,  viz:, 
one  Congregational  and  one  Universalist;  both  being  com- 
pleted and  dedicated  the  same  year. 

The  Universalist  meeting  house  was  dedicated  August 
20th.  The  order  of  exercises  was  as  follows: — Reading  se- 
lect Scriptures  by  Rev.  J.  Gr.  Adams,  of  Maiden;  Intro- 
ductory Prayer,  by  Rev.  J.  C.Waldo,  of  Woburn;  Dedica- 
catory  Prayer  by  Rev.  Hosea  Ballon,  2d,  of  Medford.  Sermon 
by  Rev.  Abel  C.  Thomas  of  Lowell;  Address  to  the  Society, 
by  Rev.  Thomas  WJiittemore,  of  Cambridgeport.  The 
church  connected  with  the  Universalist  Society,  at  present 
consists  of  31  members.  Present  acting  Pastor,  Rev. 
Woodbury  M.  Fernald.  The  Congregational  meeting 
house  was  dedicated  Oct.  22d.  A  sermon  was  preached  on 
the  occasion  by  the  Rev.  Edward  Cleveland,  acting  pastor; 


27 


dedicatory  prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Emerson,  of  South  Read- 
ing. 

The  Rev.  James  Osgood  was  the  first  pastor  of  the  church 
and  society  in  this  town.  He  was  ordained  Sept.  10th,  1729. 
The  following  ministers  assisted  in  his  ordination,  viz:  Rev. 
Richard  Brown,  of  the  1st  church,  Reading;  Rev.  Samuel 
Fiske,  of  the  1st  church,  Salem;  Rev.  Hall  Abbott,  of  Charles- 
town;  Rev.  Benj.  Prescott,  of  the  3d  church,  Salem;  Rev. 
Joseph  Emerson  of  Maiden :  Rev.  Daniel  Putnam  of  the  2d 
church,  Reading.  The  church  was  organized  a  short  time 
previous  to  Mr.  Osgood's  ordination;  and  consisted  of  13 
members,  viz:  Ephraim  Larrabee,  Abraham  Gould,  Jacob 
Howe,  Edward  Bucknam,  Joseph  Bryant,  Jonathan  Griffin, 
David  Gould,  Daniel  Gould,  Jr.,  Samuel  Spra^ue,  Ebenezer 
Knight,  Ebenezer  Parker,  Thomas  Cutler,  and  David  Gould. 

Mr.  Osgood  died  suddenly,  March  2d,  1745.  His  wife  af- 
terward married  Capt.  Ralph  Hart,  of  Boston,  but  died  in 
this  town,  August  11th,  1801,  being  83  years  of  age.  She 
is  said  to  have  been  a  very  amiable  and  excellent  person. 

The  second  minister  was  Rev.  Mr.  John  Carnes,  of  Boston, 
who  was  settled,  Dec.  17th,  1747.  The  order  of  exerciscF 
w&s  as  follows:  Rev.  Mr.  Elliot,  of  Boston,  made  the  intro- 
ductory prayer;  Rev.  Mr.  Prentice,  of  Charlestown,  preach- 
ed the  sermon;  Rev.  Mr.  Emerson,  of  Maiden,  gave  the 
charge;  and  Rev.  Mr.  Hobby,  of  Reading,  gave  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship. 

It  was  customary  in  those  days  for  the  minister  to  read 
the  psalm  to  be  sung,  as  is  the  practice  at  the  present  time. 
After  reading  the  psalm  it  devolved  on  one  of  the  deacons  of 
the  church  to  deal  it  out  to  the  singers,  a  line  or  two  at  a 
.time.  On  one  occasion,  after  the  psalm  had  been  read,  the 
good  deacon  took  the  book  and  commenced  dealing  out  the 
hymn ;  it  read  as  follows : 

"Spikenard,  saffron,  calamus,  and  (iinnannon  also, 

All  incensed  trees  with  aloes, 
And  all  chief  spices  grow,  &c. 

The  deacon  very  soon  foynd  himself  entangled  among  so 
many  spices,  and  the  minister  rose  to  help  him  along  through 
the  first  line.  The  deacon  again  rose,  but  again  the  minis- 
ter was  under  the  necessity  of  rising  to  help  him  along. 
When  the  deacon  made  the  third  trial  he  could  not 
get  through  with  the  line.  The  minister  then  arose  and  said 
to  him,  "Deacon,  you  can't  read."  It  should  however  be 
borne  in  mind,  that  people  at  that  time  could  not  generally 


m 


read  so  well  as  at  the  present  time.  The  advantages  for 
education  were  then  small. 

Mr.  Carnes  was  dismissed  July  31st,  1757. 

The  Kev.  John  Searle  was  installed  Jan.  17th.  1758.  The 
order  of  exercises  was  as  follows:  introductory  prayer  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Parsons,  of  Newburyport:  sermon  by  Rev.  Mr. 
Emerson,  of  Maiden;  charge  by  Rev.  Mr,  Cook,  of  Cam- 
bridge; right  hand  of  fellowship  by  Rev.  Mr.  Robie,  ol 
Lynn;  concluding  prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Sherman,  of  Wo- 
burn. 

Mr.  Searle  was  dismissed  April  24th,  1776. 

Rev.  John  Cleavland  was  settled  Oct.  19th,  1785.  The 
order  of  exercises  was  as  follows:  introductory  prayer  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Bradford,  of  Rowley ;  Sermon  by  Rev*.  Mr.  Cleav- 
land, father  of  the  pastor  elect;  Charge  by'Rev.  Mr,  Hopkins, 
of  Salem;  Right  Hand  of  Fellowship  by  Rev.  Rr.  Bresh,  ot 
Topsiield. 

Mr.  Cleavland  was  dismissed  Oct.  23d,  1794. 

Rev.  John  H.  Stevens  was  settled  Nov.  11th,  1795.  The 
order  of  exercises  was  as  follows :  Introductory  Prayer  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Spaulding  of  Salem;  Sermon  by  Rev.  Mr.  Brad- 
ford, of  Rowley;  Consecrating  Prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Litch- 
field, of  Carlisle;  Charge  by  Rev. '^Mr.  Prentice,  of  South 
Reading ;  Concluding  Prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Aiken,  of  Dracut. 

Mr.  Stevens  was  dismissed  ISTov.  11th,  1827,  having  been 
minister  in  this  town  for  32  years. 

Rev.  Joseph  Searle  w  as  settled  May  1st,  1838.  The  order  of 
exercises  was  as  follows :  Introductory  Prayer  by  Rev.  Brown 
Emerson,  of  Salem;  Sermon  by  Rev.  Dr.  Pay,  of  Charles- 
town;  Installing  Prayer  by  Rev.  Reuben  Emerson,  of  South 
Reading;  Charge  by  Rev.  Dr.  Beecher,  of  Boston;  Address 
to  the  church  and  people  by  Rev.  Samuel  Green,  of  Boston; 
Right  Hand  of  Fellowship  by  Rev.  Mr.  Bennett,  of  Woburn : 
Concluding  Prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Warner,  of  Medford. 

Mr.  Searle  was  dismissed  Jan.  2d,  1832. 

Rev.  Jonas  Colburn  was  settled  Aug.  1st,  1832.  The  or- 
der of  exercises  was  as  follows:  Introductory  Prayer,  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Warner,  of  Medford;  Sermon  by  Rev.  Mr.  Emer- 
son, of  South  Reading;  Charge  by  Rev.  Mr.  Stevens,  of 
Haverhill,  formerly  pastor  of  the  church;  Installing  Prayer 
by  Rev.  Mr.  Reynolds  of  Wilmington ;  Right  Hand  of  Fel- 
lowship by  Rev.  Mr.  Bennett, of  Woburn;  Concluding  Pray- 
er by  Rev.  Mr.  Reid,  of  Reading. 

Mr.  Colburn  was  dismissed  Feb.  27th,  1837. 

The  present  pastor,  Rev.  John  Haven,  was  installed  Feb* 


29 


24th,  1841.  The  order  of  exercises  was  as  follows:  Intro- 
ductory Prayer  by  Eev.  H.  S.  Green  of  Lynnfield ;  Sermon 
by  Rev.  H.  Winslow,  of  Boston;  Installing  Prayer  by  Rev. 
Mr.  Emerson,  of  South  Reading;  Charge  by  Rev.  B.  Smith, 
of  Rye,  N.  II.:  Right  Hand  of  Fellowship  by  Rev.  Mr.  Ben- 
nett, of  Woburn;  Concluding  Prayer  by  Rev.  Mr.  Baker,  of 
Medford. 

The  church  at  present  consists  of  120  members. 

The  first  marriage  attended  by  Rev.  Mr.  Osgood,  was  that 
of  John  Tkid,  of  Woburn,  to  Abigail  Gould,  of  Stoneham. 
This  was  Nov.  26th,  1729. 

In  the  year  1737,  Jan.  11th,  I  find  the  following  marriage ; 
Sambo,ot  Stoneham,  married  to  Mercar,  of  Maiden.  The  same 
year,  Nov.  28th,  Mingo,  married  to  Moll,  negro  servants  of 
Peter  Hay,  Jr. 

In  1748,  one  hundred  years  ago,  I  find  the  following ;  Oba- 
diah  How,  negro  servant  of  Mr.  Souther,  married  to  Priscil- 
la  Pomp,  both  of  Stoneham. 

According  to  the  record  kept  by  Mr.  Osgood,  he  attended 
44  marriage  ceremonies  during  his  ministry. 

I  find  no  record  kept  by  either  oi  the  three  succeeding 
ministers,  Carnes,  Searle,  or  Cleaveland. 

According  to  the  record  kept  by  Rev.  Mr.  Stevens,  I  find 
that  during  his  ministr}^  he  solemnized  175  marriages.  Mr. 
Stevens  also  recorded  448  births. 

With  regard  to  the  deaths  no  definite  statement  can  be 
made.  Up  to  the  time  of  Mr.  Stevens's  settlement  no  regu- 
lar record  was  kept.  In  passing  through  the  burying  ground 
I  find  something  like  90  grave  stones  erected  previous  to  that 
time;  or  the  deaths  occurred  previously.  But  as  it  was  for- 
merly difficult  and  expensive  to  obtain  grave  stones,  the 
probability  is  that  very  fe^v  had  stones  erected. 

The  following  is  a  record  of  th<j  deaths,  as  kept  by  Rev. 
Mr.  Stevens: — In  1795  there  were  5  deaths;  in  1796,  4;  in 
1797,9;  in  1798,5;  in  1799,  9;  in  1800, 10;  in  1801,  8;  in 
1802,  6;  in  1803,  11;  in  1804,  6;  in  1805, 14;  in  1806,  4;  in 
1807,  8;  in  1808,  5;  in  1809,  5;  in  1810,  8;  in  1811, 10;  in  1812, 
3;  in  1813,  11;  in  1814,  6;  in  1815,  8;  in  1816,  8;  in  1817, 16; 
in  1818,  4;  in  1819,  6;  in  1820,  5;  in  1821,  4;  in  1822,  5;  in 
1823,  8;  in  1824, 11;  in  1825, 14;  in  1826, 12;  in  1827,  9.  The 
remaining  account  I  take  from  the  record  of  the  sexton: — 
In  1828,  16;  in  1829,  5;  in  1830,  5;  in  1831,  16;  in  1832.  14; 
in  1833, 16;  in  1834, 16;  in  1835,  7;  in  1836,  20;  in  1837, 18; 
in  1838,  7;  in  1839, 19;  in  1840,  9;  in  1841, 14;  in  1842, 10;  in 
1843,  up  to  August  1st,  12. 


30 


It  will  be  perceived  that  1836  was  the  most  mortal  of  any 
year,  20  be'ng  removed  by  death. 

I  ought  to  have  stated  previously,  that  in  the  year  1813, 
two  Indians,  of  the  Penobscot  tribe,  came  into  town  and  took 
up  their  abode  a  lew  rods  south  from  Mr.  Hurd's  old  factory. 
They  employed  themselves  in  making  ba^skets.  It  seems 
that,  like  most  people  of  that  time,  they  were  in  the  habit  ol 
drinking  intoxicating  liquors.  It  was  stated  that  they  in- 
sulted the  workmen  connected  with  Odiorne's  nail  factory  in 
Maiden.  On  a  certain  night  some  individuals  f^proached 
their  hut  and  discharged  several  guns  loaded  with  bullets, 
nails,  &c.  The  Indians  were  both  wounded.  The  man  died 
and  was  interred  in  the  burying-yard  in  this  town.  It  was 
supposed  by  many  that  his  b.  dy  was  taken  for  the  purpose 
of  dissection.  This  was  proved  to  be  the  fact,  several  years 
after,  when  the  grave  was  opened.  The  coffin  remained,  but 
the  body  was  gone.  Another  body  was  interred  in  the  same 
grave,  which  was  also  taken  away. 

It  appears  from  the  record  kept  of  the  deaths,  that  between 
500  a-^d  600  have,  in  the  space  of  a  few  year^,  gone  down  to 
the  grave.  The  probability  is,  that  a  number  nearly  or  quite 
equal  to  the  present  population  of  the  town  ow  lie  in  the 
burying-ground.  The  earliest  date  upon  any  grave-stone  is 
that  of  Lieut.  Timothy  Wright,  who  died  in  1728. 

The  Scollays,  the  Southers,  the  Bucks,  together  with  the 
slaves  formerly  kept  in  town,  Kingstone,  Cato,  Simon,  Oba- 
diah,  and  many  others,  have  no  grave-stones  to  show  us 
where  they  lie.  I  am  told,  however,  that  the  negro  servants 
were  buiied  on  the  east  side  of  the  yard.  But  as  their  bodies 
have  returned  to  their  native  dust,  and  as  the  coffins  have 
decayed,  the  sods  which  covered  their  graves  have  settled 
down  to  their  former  level. 

Thus  I  have  attempted  to  give  a  brief  history  of  this  town, 
though  I  am  aware  it  is  a  very  imperfect  account,  compared 
with  what  it  might  have  been,  had  it  been  attended  to  sev- 
eral ye^rs  since. 

The  following  description  may  at  present  be  ^"iven  of  this 
town : 

This  is  a  small  town,  rocky  and  uneven.  It  has  some  good 
soil,  and  a  considerable  quantity  of  wood-land.  It  was  in- 
corporated in  1725.  The  population  in  1837  was  932;  present 
population  about  1050.  During  the  year  ending  April  1st, 
1837,  there  were  made  in  this  town  380,100  pairs  of  shoes, 
valued  at  $184,717,  employing  more  than  half  its  inhabitants. 
Spot  Pond,  a  beautiful  sheet  of  soft  and  pure  water,  lies  in 


n 


fchis  town,  8  miles  north  from  Boston.  It  covers  an  area  of 
283  acres,  and  is  143  feet  above  high  water  mark  at  Boston. 
There  is  also  said  to  be  a  fall  of  100  feet  in  the  distance  of 
about  100  rods  from  the  pond.  For  many  years,  many  of  the 
Inhabitants  of  the  city  of  Boston  have  been  anxious  to  take 
the  water  from  this  pond  to  the  city,  by  means  of  aqueducts. 
They  are  about  commencing  operations  to  that  effect. 

In  looking  back  to  our  ancestors  and  their  descendants,  we 
dnd  that  four  generations  have  followed  the  first  settlers  of 
this  town,  in  rapid  succession,  to  the  house  appointed  for  all 
the  living.  But,  while  the  wheels  of  time  are  rolling  on,  and 
carrying  generation  after  generatioii  to  the  grave,  the  im- 
mortal part  of  man  is  in  its  infancy.  The  soul  is  destined  to 
survive  the  wreck  of  nature  and  the  crush  of  worlds. 

*'Behold  bow  soon  the  year  is  past  and  gone  ( 
For  time  litte  streams  is  ever  rolling  on; 
The  rose  is  fragrant,  but  it  lades  in  time, 
The  violet  sweet,  but  quickly  past  the  prime ; 
White  lilies  hang  their  heads  and  soon  decay. 
And  whiter  snows  in  minutes  melt  away. 

Such  and  so  withering  is  our  blooming  youth. 
To  things  immortal  time  can  do  no  wrong, 
And  that  which  never  is  to  die  forever  must  be  youug*'^ 


Om  Friday  evening,  Nov.  25th,  1819,  one  of  the  most  bru- 
tal murders,  anywhere  on  record,  was  committed  in  this 
town.  I  refer  to  the  murder  of  Jacob  Gould.  The  following 
account,  published  by  Rev.  J.  W.  Poland,  a  native  of  Stone- 
ham,  I  copy  principally  from  the  Farmers  Monthly  Visi- 
tor of  March,  1843,  printed  at  Concord,  N.  H. 

THE  STONEHAM  MURDER. 

Among  the  early  settlers  of  Stoneham,  Mass.,  there  were 
some  by  the  name  of  Gould.  The  name  has  now  become 
quite  common  in  that  town,  and  in  the  adjoining  town  of 
South  Reading.  There  were  two  families  of  that  name  set- 
tled near  to  Spot  pond,  on  the  old  road  leading  to  Maiden 
and  Medford.  One  of  the  families,  at  the  time  in  which  the 
murder  took  place,  consisted  of  two  brothers,  who  were  bach- 
elors, a  sister,  who  was  a  maiden  lady,  and  a  widow  Winship, 
hired  help.  The  names  of  the  brothers  were  Jacob  and  Da- 
vid; an'^  the  sister's  name  was  Polly.  Jacob  was  the  oldest, 
and  owned  the  real  estate;  but  the  property  of  David  and 


S2 


Folly  was  chiefly  in  money.  Sometimes  they  would  let 
money,  where  there  was  good  security,  but  generally  pre- 
ferred to  keep  it  in  specie.  It  was  generally  understoof^ 
among  the  people  that  there  was  considerable  specie  in  that 
house,  and  many  a  thief,  no  doubt,  had  longed  to  get  hold  ot 
it  At  length  the  time  came  for  the  hoarded  gold  and  silvei* 
to  get  into  circulation. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Dal  ton,  who  had  formerly  resided 
in  Stoneham,  was  an  inmate  of  the  State  prison  at  Charles- 
town,  Mass.,  when  the  murder  took  place.  It  was  ascer- 
tained afterwards,  that  this  Dalton  informed  some  convicts, 
who  were  about  graduating,  of  this  store  of  money,  and  in- 
structed them  how  to  get  it.  (At  that  time  there  were  op- 
portunities for  the  convicts  to  converse  with  each  other.) 
The  name  of  one  of  these  was  Daniels,  who  had  formerly 
been  a  shoe  dealer  in  Boston.  A  few  days  before  this  mur- 
der, Daniels  passed  through  that  part  of  the  town  in  which 
the  Goulds  lived,  on  a  tour  of  discovery.  He  made  inquiries 
of  two  boys,  whom  he  met  separately,  relative  to  the  condi- 
tion of  the  family;  ^'whether  they  had  money;  had  they 
guns,  or  dogs,  or  were  they  pretty  courageous? ''  The  boys' 
answers  probably  satisfied  him  that  there  could  be  little 
difficulty  in  the  way  of  making  an  effort  to  get  hold  of  the 
money. 

The  widow  who  lived  with  this  family  was  knowing  to 
their  having  a  considerable  sum  ot  money,  as  she  had  heard 
them  talk  about  it,  and  by  some  was  supposed  to  have  been 
accessory  to  the  robbery. 

On  the  25th  of  November,  1819,  Jacob  went  up  to  town  to 
get  some  rum,  as  he  was  intending  to  kill  his  hogs  the  next 
day.  Poor  man !  he  little  thought  of  being  butchered  him- 
self. He  had  come  home,  and  between  eight  and  nine  o'clock, 
while  he  sat  drinking  some  sling,  in  rushed  three  ruffian^j 
with  their  faces  blacked,  and  with  dirks  in  hand,  and  de- 
manded his  money.  Jacob  attempted  to  defend  himself  with 
his  chair,  but  they  overpowered  him.  He  fell,  being  stabbed 
in  several  places;  and  one  of  the  wounds,  which  reached  the 
region  of  the  heart,  proved  mortal.  David,  through  fright, 
passed  by  an  axe  which  stood  near  him,  and  which  had  beeti 
newly  ground,  and  while  in  the  act  of  taking  up  a  billet  of 
wood,  felt  the  prick  of  a  dagger.  On  turning  round  he  re- 
ceived two  wounds;  one  in  his  side,  or  abdomen,  and  one 
against  his  heart,  but  which  was  prevented  from  reaching  it 
by  the  dirk's  passing  through  the  thick  part  of  his  left  arm 
first.    As  no  further  resistance  was  made,  the  robbers  pro- 


33 


<-eeded  to  bind  the  hands  of  David  and  Polly,  which  they 
tied  so  tight  as  to  cause  the  cords  to  cut  into  the  flesh.  The 
fourth  man  stood  at  the  door  to  keep  watch,  and  to  prevent 
escape,  and  was  supposed  by  some  to  have  been  a  man  who 
formerly  resided  in  town,  by  the  name  of  Cilfton.  After 
their  hands  were  secured,  they  were  taken  up  stairs  one  at  a 
lime  to  hand  over  their  money.  Jacob  was  carried  up  first, 
[t  s  ems  he  at  that  time  had  but  one  $6  bill.  This  he  had 
reserved  for  Benjamin  Lynde,  of  Maiden,  who  a  short  time 
previous  had  his  house  destroyed  by  fire. 

After  Jacob  was  taken  down  stairs,  David  was  led  up:  he 
had  about  $200.  Afterwards  Polly  was  compelled  to  go  and 
get  her  money.  She  had  $600,  in  six  deerskin  bags  of  $100 
each,  deposited  in  Jacob's  chest. 

In  going  up  the  stairs,  the  light  went  ou^  in  the  dark  lan- 
tern which  they  had  with  them,  and  in  the  scuffle  to  secure 
their  prisoner,  Polly's  hands  were  badly  cut  with  a  knife,  as 
well  as  one  of  the  fingers  of  a  robber.  This  robber  was  evi- 
dently Daniels,  who  was  afterwards  detected,  partly  by  means 
of  this  wound.  After  they  had  secured  the  money  they 
threw  the  poor  creatures  down  cellar,  and  set  a  table  agains't 
the  door.  Tbe  widow  walked  down  among  the  rest.  They 
then  drank  upon  the  rum,  divided  the  money,  and  finally  left, 
telling  them  that  they  were  going  to  a  near  neighbor's  (Da- 
vid Gould's)  to  serve  hem  the  same;  also  stating  that  they 
should  leave  one  to  guard  them  for  the  space  of  two  hoiu's, 
when  they  could  come  up  if  they  saw  fit  after  that'time.  At 
their  request,  they  threw  down  a  feather  bed  for  them  to  lie 
upon. 

But  Jacob's  dying  groans  aroused  the  feelings  of  David, 
:ind  at  about  eleven  4)'clock  he  ventured  to  go  up;  went  to  a 
neighbors  and  gave  the  alarm.  Three  men  started  out  im- 
mediately with  I  heir  guns,  and  w^ent  to  the  house  with  him. 
The  robbers  had  probably  been  gone  two  hours. 

By  daylight  the  whole  town  was  aroused,  and  many  were 
in  pursuit.     Jacob  died  about  three  ^  'clock  in  the  mo  ning. 

Though  the  most  diligent  search  was  made,  nothing  of  the 
robbers  could  be  found.  A  reward  of  five  hundred  dollars 
was  ofl'ered  by  David  Gould  lor  the  detection  of  the  robbers, 
and  the  Governor  of  the  State  added  five  hundred  more. 
This  started  out  many  in  pursuit.  It  was  not  long  before 
Daniels  (the  man  spoken  of  before)  was  taken  up  in  New- 
port, Rhode  Island.  There  were  many  suspicious  things 
about  him,  all  the  particulars  of  which  are  not  now  recol- 
lected.     He  had  a  cut  on  one  of  his  fingers,  which  looked  as 


34 


though  it  were  done  with  a  knife,  but  which  he  declared  was 
caused  by  a  sea-shell,  while  he  was  skipping  it  upon  the  water. 
There  was  blood  in  his  pocket-book,  and  on  some  money, 
w'hich  he  said  came  there  by  his  putting  in  his  finger  after  a 
rag  to  wrap  around  it.  He  had  also  some' gold  pieces,  re- 
sembling those  which  had  been  described  by  the  Goulds,  but 
which  he  said  he  had  taken  in  Boston,  or  somewhere  else. 
The  suspicions  were  so  strong  against  him,  that  he  was 
brought  on  to  the  jail  at  Lechmere  Point,  in  Cambridge,  and 
committed  for  trial.  The  two  boys  with  whom  the  conver- 
sation had  been  held  previous  to  the  murder,  were  carried  to 
the  court-house  and  were  required  to  go  into  a  crowd  of 
men,  among  whom  was  Daniels,  and  see  if  they  could  find 
the  man  who  had  conversed  with  them.  One  went  in  and 
immediately  pointed  out  Daniels  as  the  man.  Daniels  did 
not  seem  to  be  moved  by  this  boy's  story.  The  boy  was  then 
taken  to  another  room,  and  the  other  boy  brought  in.  He 
quickly  walked  up.  to  Daniels  and  declared  him  to  be  the 
man,  at  the  same  time  telling  him  what  he  said  to  him  at  the 
time  mentioned.  Daniels  then  turned  pale,  and  began  to 
sweat  profusely.  He  did  not  have  his  trial  in  full  at  that 
time,  and  was  again  committed.  Just  before  his  trial  was  to 
take  place,  he  •  Imug  himself  in  his  cell,  thereby  confirming 
his  guilt,  though  he  made  no  confession. 

About  this  time  a  man  by  the  name  of  Phillips  was  taken 
up  on  suspicion  of  being  concerned  in  this  murder.  He  was 
at  a  gambling  ho'^se  in  West  Boston,  and  had  money  in  his 
possession  which  anJiwc'ed  to  the  description  given  of  that 
lost  in  the  robbery.  Upon  his  examination,  though  David 
an  Polly  felt  positive  that  the  money  was  theirs,  yet  they 
did  not  dare  to  swear  to  it,  and  so  he  escaped.  He  left  the 
State  prison  about  the  time  Daniels  did.  and  was  no  doubt 
an  accomplice  with  him. 

After  thi«,  another  man  was  taken  up  at  Portland,  Me., 
but  he  wa^  probably  innocent.     He  was  not  retained. 

It  is  now  twenty-three  years  since  this  horrid  transaction 
took  place,  and  nothing  further  has  been  ascertained  in  rela- 
tion to  the  r  bbers. 

The  family  are  now  all  dead.  David  died  July  Oth,  1834: 
being  in  the  71st  year  of  his  age.  Polly  died  Nov.  21st. 
1830,  being  in  the  78th  year  of  her  age;  and  the  v\idow  Win- 
ship  died  but  a  few  years  since  at  the  almshouse  in  Medford. 

Possibly  the  murderers  are  all  dead. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


-^#^ 


IN  STAOKU 


MAR  17  19ei 


MAR  1 V  1961 


LD  21A-50w-12,'60 
(B6'221sl0)476B 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


1  ^'^^UAVMOUNT 

PAMPHLET  BINDER 

ManufacluftJby 

[eAYLOR0BROS.I«c. 
Syracuse,  N.  Y. 
Stoclcton,  O'-'' 


IVI295757 


f 


% 


% 


V 


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i 


